Letters to the Editor
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@ chimpygo
"I'm awfully proud of American ideals, of the fact that the Great Experiment was the first government of laws--not individual rulers--in the history of the world."
I'm not sure this is true. Is it? Couldn't republican Rome arguably be called a government of laws?
And what about non-western or "tribal" governments?
I say this not to be pedantic, but just to point out that you're falling into the same trap, albeit in a benign way, as those who reflexively castigate those they deem unpatriotic.
Namely, the myth of American exceptionalism.
In fact, this was one of the few panders of Obama's speech: he said that only in America would his story (i.e., his multi-culturalism) be possible.
That's an absurd statement, but it's the lie we all require.
I understand that politicians can't dare to suggest that actually, we're not quite so special as we like to think, but special nonetheless.
Still, in the interests of globalization and peaceful coexistence, I think we should start moving in the direction of at least recognizing that the idea of American Exceptionalism is a myth, however noble, however necessary it may be.