Citizenship, Part II
The point of the previous entry is not that I think there is no hope for my country. The point is that Obama, as wise and good as I believe him to be (especially as politicians go), is not the Messiah. The point is also that along with this changing of the guard We the People need to do some serious soul-searching and changing of our own attitudes and patterns of behavior.
Looking to any human elected official to revolutionize the world, keep us free from all dangers, provide for all our needs, and eradicate all evil is naively Utopian. It is also idolatry. Similarly, blaming our political leaders for all tragedies and chronic social ills is lazy and childish, no matter how incompetent and corrupt those leaders turned out to be. Who elected them? Who looked the other way during the weeks, years, or decades leading up to the crisis of the hour? Who swallowed their lines whole and bought what they were selling and joined their crusade because it felt shiny and happy and warm and fuzzy and safe and easy and righteous and glorious at the time?
Who abdicated responsibility for the world to Uncle Sam? More than a handful of us have been mentally and physically atrophying in front of the TV, sitting holed up in the academic ivory tower knowing too much and doing too little, partying the night away in pursuit of ersatz happiness (stimulation or numbness), maxing out credit cards with fashion and gadget addictions, obsessing over image and spending hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars each year trying to 'look healthy' when we're not, succeeding in business while failing at human decency, and confusing the idyllic white picket fence and weed-free lawn with goodness.
We the People have somehow degenerated into a kind of collective Emo brat. We smugly or sulkily assert our deservingness, demonize or ostracize anyone who won't coddle us while we lick our wounds, and resent the suggestion that we take any responsibility for our own character or lack thereof. Instead of reveling in chronic adolescence, whining about how rough we've got it, and running to the pharmacy whenever something isn't working right, Americans need to be growing up and showing up in their own lives by putting their money where their mouth is, reading news that might (gasp!) make them think or tell them something they don't want to hear, writing letters to their senators, getting their hands dirty cleaning up their own mess or someone else's, and otherwise doing real work (not just pushing paper and buttons) to make the world a better place for their neighbors and children.
Yeah, we were all born into a broken system and we've all been lied to, but we've also gone along with it when we've know better and chosen comfort and ignorance over conscience and effort time and time again. Nobody's clean.
Looking to any human elected official to revolutionize the world, keep us free from all dangers, provide for all our needs, and eradicate all evil is naively Utopian. It is also idolatry. Similarly, blaming our political leaders for all tragedies and chronic social ills is lazy and childish, no matter how incompetent and corrupt those leaders turned out to be. Who elected them? Who looked the other way during the weeks, years, or decades leading up to the crisis of the hour? Who swallowed their lines whole and bought what they were selling and joined their crusade because it felt shiny and happy and warm and fuzzy and safe and easy and righteous and glorious at the time?
Who abdicated responsibility for the world to Uncle Sam? More than a handful of us have been mentally and physically atrophying in front of the TV, sitting holed up in the academic ivory tower knowing too much and doing too little, partying the night away in pursuit of ersatz happiness (stimulation or numbness), maxing out credit cards with fashion and gadget addictions, obsessing over image and spending hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars each year trying to 'look healthy' when we're not, succeeding in business while failing at human decency, and confusing the idyllic white picket fence and weed-free lawn with goodness.
We the People have somehow degenerated into a kind of collective Emo brat. We smugly or sulkily assert our deservingness, demonize or ostracize anyone who won't coddle us while we lick our wounds, and resent the suggestion that we take any responsibility for our own character or lack thereof. Instead of reveling in chronic adolescence, whining about how rough we've got it, and running to the pharmacy whenever something isn't working right, Americans need to be growing up and showing up in their own lives by putting their money where their mouth is, reading news that might (gasp!) make them think or tell them something they don't want to hear, writing letters to their senators, getting their hands dirty cleaning up their own mess or someone else's, and otherwise doing real work (not just pushing paper and buttons) to make the world a better place for their neighbors and children.
Yeah, we were all born into a broken system and we've all been lied to, but we've also gone along with it when we've know better and chosen comfort and ignorance over conscience and effort time and time again. Nobody's clean.
One can't say with any integrity that one 'values' something unless it is reflected in the way one lives and the possibilities that one extends to others. Politics is, or should be, so much more than cheering or sneering the pre-formulated soundbytes of one's ideological camp. Politics means everything about the ordering and governance of human society. Citizenship is so much more than voting. It is the way one occupies the world to which one belongs and carries out one's responsibilities in that world.
A good way to start is to take a hard look at our place in human history and proceed with more humility--and, where appropriate, repentance--when we speak about where we come from, what we are doing, and where we are headed. U.S. citizenship is not proof of superior humanity, license to indulge oneself at others' expense, or grounds for preferential entitlement to peace, prosperity, and security. It is quite possible, the best efforts of Obama and friends notwithstanding, that in a few years U.S. citizenship will not be an asset at all.
Someday the sun will set on the Almighty Dollar, which for anyone currently on the winning side of the stars and stripes is an inconvenient truth to say the least. Get used to it, darlin'. Empires fall. And lots of people are out of luck. And there is considerable misery and chaos for awhile. And lots of other people are better off. And life goes on.
So choose this day whom you will serve. Choose this day where you will place your hope.
Forgive us, Father, for we know not what we do. God bless everyone. God have mercy on America.
posted by Ingrid at 3:10 PM
1 Comments:
These are a couple of powerful posts, Ingrid. I miss being around you and having these kinds of conversations! I put your reference letter in the mail this morning and it should be on its way to WA soon. :) - Maria
Post a Comment
<< Home