As we approach another celebration of the birth of this great nation, I can’t help but turn my thoughts to the current state of our union – and I don’t mean the staged annual performance broadcast from the floor of the Senate chamber. I look about with consternation and deep concern, and wonder if this is really the best we could have accomplished as a people and a country. If this, even in their wildest imaginings, is what the Founders could have envisioned as they stepped forward into an unknowable future when they put pen to paper and wrote these now immortal words in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed… ”
It’s been 247 years since those words laid the foundation on which our republic stands, and once again we find ourselves on the brink of a dark and unknowable future. What lies ahead for our nation is a question many are afraid to ponder, and to which some believe themselves to have the answer. The only thing of which I’m certain is that more people need to stand up and ask the hard questions; demand more than simplistic sound bites for answers; demand action of those elected to represent us in the halls of government; and demand more of these representatives of the people than simply using the bully pulpit of their offices to further their own personal agendas, and monetizing their 15 minutes on the national stage while bellying up to the public trough.
And make no mistake; those of whom I speak are our representatives, not our leaders. They are in office to do our bidding, and it is up to each of us to hold them accountable for their actions, and their words. This is especially true when those self same words and actions fly in the face of the wishes of the majority of the citizenry, and only serve to further rend the fabric of our American way of life. There truly is no place for hate-mongering, divisive partisanship and political posturing. The obstructionism and obfuscation seen at every level of government in recent years is, in my humble opinion, tantamount to treason and should be dealt with as such. As I see it, the sole business of those elected to office is to act in the best interest of the nation as a whole, not simply for their party, some vocal minority of their constituencies, or to the benefit of special interest groups, and campaign donors with deep pockets. In other words, do their jobs!
Sure, we’re a military and industrial superpower, but that alone is not what makes a nation great. The jingoism and myopia of those who would have us believe in a mythical Camelot – in a time when all was right, and just and good in America – is, at best, delusional. There has never been such a time in the history of our nation. The American Dream has always been about the potential for individual success, a meritocracy if you will. But there have always been those who believe the end justifies the means. Today, these amoral grifters are, unfortunately, considered role models by some.
Whatever the tendencies of those currently in power positions in business and government, the nation builders of the past – and the lesser men who followed – have had the same tendencies in equal measure. The toughest, not necessarily always the brightest, took what they wanted. They bent the land and the people they encountered to their will. They worked indentured and enslaved humans, and when that was no longer fashionable, they hired impoverished immigrants whom they paid a pittance. Those are the backs on which this nation was built; the root stock from which the ancient vine of our democracy is sprung, and from which the bitter grapes of broken hopes and dreams of many Americans now hang.
As an immigrant myself, I’ve always believed the so called “American Experiment” is about the coming together of people of diverse races, religions, ethnicities, and cultural backgrounds; the setting aside of those differences – as well as our baser human natures – for the good of the nation and the betterment of all people, not simply a bold or fortunate few. While some great strides have been made towards creating a more egalitarian society, we still have a long way to go. Of one thing I’m certain: attempting to go back to some mythical past is definitely heading in the wrong direction. Happy birthday, America, here’s wishing you many more!
W.R. van Elburg is a James City County resident. He can be reached at [email protected].
