02 Nov Everything, Everywhere, All at Once

“Are today’s perceptions reality?” – The Lonely Realist

Everybody’s distraught. No one likes the way things are going. Everyone wants change, though few agree on what the change should be. Many are overwhelmed by immigration, inflation, the economy, wars, China, artificial intelligence, etc. – they’re drained by “everything, everywhere, all at once.” The one thing everyone agrees on is dissatisfaction…, and that’s true whether or not they agree on the reason(s). The perception of Americans today is that things are “bad.” Are today’s perceptions becoming reality? The truth is that all most much of the negativity derives from politicking and social media, subjects much flogged discussed in the media. Despite the realities, those who feel overwhelmed cannot easily be persuaded that their perceptions are wrong.

Dissatisfaction was the theme of a recent article in The Atlantic entitled “The Death of American Exceptionalism,” its message being that “most young people in the U.S. no longer believe their country is anything special.” That is the wrong perception. Although young people’s angst is both reflexive and reflective of parental angst, opportunities in America abound and continue to grow, as the facts amply demonstrate. A recent Wall Street Journal article reported that today’s young adults have 25% more wealth than their Baby Boomer parents had at their age, adding that their increased wealth is driven by an American economy where the inflation-adjusted median incomes of America’s young adults are at all-time highs and poverty rates for children and younger adults are lower than they were in the early 2000s. America’s economy prompted The Economist to publish an October special report that accurately labeled the American economy “The Envy of the World.” Why, then, the discontent? Social media negativism, its distortions-via-statistical-manipulations, selective reporting and simple fakery are a primary reason for the multi-generational focus on self-absorbed dissatisfaction. American exceptionalism is the continued reality, although there is plenty of opportunity for 21^st Century complexities to overwhelm the senses with “everything, everywhere, all at once” that necessarily contain heavy doses of both bad and good. The media feeding frenzy (coupled with election-year politicking) largely ignores the good and significantly overreports the bad. While the realities are challenging, the gargantuan advantages of 21^st Century life are exceedingly rewarding. Yes, life used to be simpler and easier (especially according to Luddites). There arguably was less to be worried about. But there also was less to be thankful for. 21^st Century Americans enjoy a higher standard of living and far more beneficial technology, games, toys, entertainment and opportunities than at any other time in history…, or anywhere else on Earth. Simpler may be less confusing…, but it is not better.

The dictionary defines “exceptional” as “superior,” and the U.S. indeed has been superior in almost all ways, especially in its economy and democratic process. Part of that American exceptionalism is due to its origins. The American Revolution established the United States as the first nation to base its existence on liberty, equality, individualism, democracy and capitalism. Those fundamental values have driven America’s efforts to transform the world in its image. That combination of history and mission are the cornerstones of American exceptionalism. Whereas history and mission are aspirational, America actually achieved what it set out to do. Its exceptional performance began with its Founders. They were not born “Americans.” They were immigrants, or children of immigrants, or the children of children of immigrants. They and their families attained power and wealth through personal efforts. Together, they pursued a common cause and, despite their disparate backgrounds and philosophies, their very different personalities and animosities, buried their differences to found a uniquely new country. A grounding principal of the Founders was to establish America as a safe haven for generations of similarly-minded freedom-seekers. George Washington wrote that “I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of mankind, to whatever nation they might belong.” Thomas Paine called America “an asylum for mankind.” Thomas Jefferson wrote: “This refuge, once known, will produce reaction on the happiness even of those who remain there, by warning their taskmasters that when the evils of Egyptian oppression become heavier than those of the abandonment of country, another Canaan is open where their subjects will be received as brothers, and secured against like oppressions by a participation in the right of self-government.”

Of course, the Founders realized that “undesirables” – which subsequently included and continues to include Catholics, Irishmen, Italians, Jews and Asians – should not be welcomed into America. The Founders naturally also wished to maintain the aristocratic integrity of their American ideals. Alexander Hamilton wrote: “The safety of a republic depends essentially on the energy of a common national sentiment; on a uniformity of principles and habits; on the exemption of the citizens from foreign bias and prejudice; and on that love of country which will almost invariably be found to be closely connected with birth, education, and family.” But America, because of the principles established by the Founders, attracted “undesirables” … who became American citizens … and attained the right to vote. The Naturalization Act of 1790 allowed any free white person of “good character” to become a citizen and didn’t prevent Catholics, Irishmen, Italians, Germans and Jews (though not Asians) from entering America. Because of lousy conditions in their countries, immigrants poured into the United States during the early 19^th Century. The backlash by job-threatened workers naturally led to creation of anti-immigration parties…, and politicians took note. Although Chinese were the first ethnic immigrant group to be denied entry, they were not the last. Quotas were imposed to limit immigration from Eastern and Southern European countries (too many “undesirables”) and from Japan, and to completely exclude Filipinos. That marked the beginnings of a new industry: organized (as well as disorganized) illegal immigration. The number of illegals in the U.S. prompted Ronald Reagan in 1986 to wipe the slate clean by granting amnesty to more than 3 million illegal immigrants.

Which brings us back to what makes America exceptional. For the rest of the world, America remains Ronald Reagan’s “shining city on the hill,” a beacon appealing to those who want to be free to experience American-style liberty, equality, individualism, democracy and capitalism … and who believe that the Statue of Liberty means that they will be welcomed in America, be accepted in America, and be assimilated in America. That is what makes America exceptional … because that doesn’t happen anywhere else in the world. America’s current immigration laws both have, and have not, been furthering that brand of American exceptionalism. Those laws instead have become synonymous with “undesirables” and a lever of divisiveness. Much as the Founders overcame their divisions to create the American Dream, Americans today need to do the same in order to retain American exceptionalism and effect the goal of E Pluribus Unum (“out of many, one”).

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Finally (from good friends)

One day, a first-grade teacher was reading the story of Chicken Little to her class. Coming to the part where Chicken Little becomes frantic, warning the farmer about a perceived danger, she read: “… and Chicken Little went up to the farmer and said, ‘The sky is falling! The sky is falling!’”

The teacher turned to the class and asked, “Now what do you think that the farmer said?”

One little girl immediately raised her hand and the teacher called on her. She stood and said, “I think he said: ‘Holy Shit!  A talking chicken!’”

The teacher was unable to teach for the next 10 minutes.