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Happy Birthday, America!                         #394

By Hank Silverberg 

In 1787, as Ben Franklin was walking out of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, a woman named Elizabeth Willing Powell asked him what kind of government we were getting. 

Franklin replied, "A republic, if we can keep it."

Those words have come back into the public mind often over the last 250 years, and as we approach the big birthday celebration at the end of this coming week, it has become more than just a history lesson. 

(Liberty Bell, Courtesy of National Park Service) 

There will be celebrations in big cities and small towns across the country leading up to July 4th, but somehow those usually patriotic and uniting celebrations have seemed a bit sour this year.  

Why? Well, let's look at the Great American Fair that opened on the National Mall  in D.C. this week. 

It was supposed to include booths representing all 50 states, but 11 states bowed out either because the price tag was too high,(over $100,000), or because their leaders thought the Fair had been taken over by MAGA. 

There was some controversy when North Carolina pulled out, but someone from the state volunteered to run the booth anyway, and they included and displayed Confederate flags on TV screens inside the pavilion. That, of course, was offensive to many people. The flags were removed after the North Carolina Governor intervened. But the entire fair, which was supposed to be a uniting factor for the country, has turned into a political football. 

Here's what I think should be remembered on the 4th of July as we celebrate 250 years. You will note I did not purge the bad stuff. 

1) When the United States was created as a Republic with life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as the focus, millions of Black people living here were slaves with no rights at all. 

2) The United States is still the greatest country in the world, and the richest with high standards of living, yet we have trouble feeding and housing our population. 

3) Today this nation is diverse, as always.It was built by immigrants and made strong by immigrants, though at times over our past, immigrants have been abused and scorned, and that is happening again now.  

4) Our nation was born free of the religious strife that had plagued Europe, and our Founding Fathers, some of them men of faith, were determined to keep religion out of government. While Christianity is the majority religion in the U.S., we are NOT a "Christian nation," and the USA was designed that way.     

5) George Washington, when he left office, warned  those who followed to be careful of party factions dividing the country.  Those in office now see more dedicated to party than to their country. 

6) One of our major principles remains "All men (and women) are created equal." Yet racism, anti-Semitism, sexism and ageism remain a stain on our reputation and the present way of life. 

7) America has been a beacon of freedom throughout the world, having freed much of Europe and Asia from oppression in the 20th century. Yet now we revert to the isolationism that puts us all in peril again.

Even with all these things, America is still a great place to live in the 21st century. And we should celebrate that, free of the politics that divide us. We should also continue our quest to be what Lincoln described as "a more perfect union". 

We should be proud to be Americans, warts and all. 

   Happy Birthday America. 

  

News You May Have Missed!



Ironically, as the Fourth of July approaches, the    Supreme Court is getting ready to rule on one of the cornerstones of our history.  The 14th Amendment, passed after the Civil War to give citizenship to freed slaves, also established that anyone born in the United States or within its jurisdiction, is automatically an American citizen.
The only exception were children of foreign diplomats. That  interpretation was backed up by a 19th century SCOTUS ruling involving a Chinese-American.  But President Trump signed an Executive Order early in his second term challenging that birthright if neither parent was a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident at the time of the child's birth. It will not have any effect on anyone in that category now, but only in the future. A ruling backing Trump's position would not only affect future babies, but would also have a dramatic impact on presidential power to use Executive Orders. 

https://www.10news.com/news/local-news/looking-ahead-at-the-scotus-ruling-for-the-birthright-citizenship-case


A Space Race Of A Different Kind

NASA is now racing to keep an aging telescope from falling back to Earth. 

The agency has hired Katalyst Space Technologies on a $30 million contract to boost the Swift Observatory into a higher orbit where it can continue looking for some of the universe's biggest 

(Testing Link   Courtesy NASA)

 explosions in space. Swift has been watching space since its launch in 2004, but it has been sinking in orbit faster than expected because of solar activity. It needs a higher orbit to survive. 

Katalyst will launch a three-armed LINK spacecraft this week from an airplane with a Pegasus rocket from an atoll in the Pacific's Marshall Islands that will chase after Swift and lift it into higher orbit. 

If this works, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, which is also at risk, could be next.   

https://apnews.com/article/nasa-swift-satellite-rescue-mission-f715e10a93c1015e280a7ccd1028a9c4



Dumbest Quote Of The Week! 

This quote comes from an anonymous person at a "Trans March" in San Francisco as he railed against California Senator Scott Wiener who recently won the Democratic primary to replace retiring Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.  

Wiener, who is gay and Jewish, has been a strong supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and is also a supporter of Israel. Several in the march attacked him verbally for supporting Israel. 

Here are two comments that stand out:


"How could you betray queers? How could you oppress people?"

"You stopped being queer the minute you started supporting Israel." 


Some in the group were pro-Palestinian and took offense with Wiener's support for Israel. 

But here's the thing. In the Gaza strip where Palestinians are oppressed by Hamas every day, homosexuality is against the law and punishable by death or torture. Gay men are often tossed off rooftops as punishment. 

Meanwhile, across the border in Israel, in a diverse population the queer community is protected by law and fully integrated into society.  

It is amazing to me how many people simply don't know what is going on in the Middle East. 

 (You suggestions and comments  are welcome)

My recent book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at:  HankSilverberg@gmail.com for instructions on how to get a copy at a reduced price and with my signature)                       

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084Q7K6M5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-campaign-hank-silverberg/1126429796


My NEWEST book is now available. It is designed for use in Public Speaking and entry level communications classes. 


                                               

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