My Beloved Nation

"Corporate Harvest", by Tim Holmes. Predatory capitalism must be stopped!

At a lovely barbeque, eating good food among great friends, I recognized what a hard time I was having celebrating the birth of my nation, the US of A. It's not that I don't love my country, it's that the one I inhabit so dimmly resembles the one I fell in love with as a boy. Lookng at our leader and the quality of recent national decisions, it just doesn't feel to me anything like the "land of the free and the home of the brave" we all sing of.

The US constitution is one of the most exemplary documents in all of history, putting forward the idea of equality and self-determination that has been a model for the 120+ democracies that dominate the world today. With its sexist language and ignorance of favoritism, the document is less than perfect to be sure, but the ideals it enshrines have transformed the world into a much more humane community than anything seen before.

Trouble is that even as our concept of "equality" grew over the centuries to finally include women, people of color and different sexual orientations, we have increasingly lost our ability to spread equality of power along with equal citizenship, allowing the elites to once again take the reins, as they have throughout the wholebloody history of humanity. But this time it's not just the survival of the lower classes at risk, it's that of the whole human race! As climate change threatens many species across the world, including humans, the rich elites are so blinded by their ability to buy their own way into safety that they cannot see the rest of humanity as their equals.  They are driving us to extinction by their refusal to change and embrace sustainability! I believe it is our challenge to force a vision of equality upon all who do not participate if any of us are to survive. Democracy allows us this power, but we have to seize it!

The greed of the few threatens the survival of us all. And the time grows short. If we don't insist on wresting a nation of equal citizens persuing a sustainable future, the newborns among us just may be last generation to enjoy life on this planet! I am willing to sacrifice to a greater vision that includes human survival. It's going to mean radical changes to our relationship with each other and the earth. Are you with me?