America
283 pieces tagged “America”, newest first.
Election Should Be About Restoring the American Vision
Year-end surveys convey a picture of disillusionment and cynicism among Americans about their government and their country. According to the Pew Research Center, only 19 percent now say they "trust the federal government to do what is right always or most of the time." This is close to the lowest it has been in the last 50 years. Consider that in 1964, 80 percent expressed trust in the federal government. In recent Gallup polling, 69 percent of Americans say big government is the "biggest threat" to the nation's future.
Recruiting Jihadists
The radical Islamic terror group al-Shabaab released a recruitment video over the weekend. It features Malcolm X, stokes racial tensions and urges black Muslim Americans to rise up against our country. It sounds like it could have been written by Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam leader once honored by Obama's Chicago church. But what the media focused on was footage of Donald Trump calling for a temporary ban on Muslim immigration to America until we can sort out the peaceful Muslims from those who hate us.
The Sum of All Fears
President Obama and members of his administration assure us we have nothing to fear when it comes to terrorism. Whether you accept this, or not — and opinion polls show a majority do not — there is another fear that in large part is behind the phenomenon known as Donald Trump. It is the fear we are in danger of losing America. Speaking as a member of a group that will in this century become a minority in America — that would be white people — I don't fear minority status. I fear that those who will soon make up the majority will not embrace the values and traditions that have built and sustained America through wars, economic downturns and other challenges to our way of life.
Admit It. You Just Want Your Own Dictator
This incessant clamoring by voters and punditry for better "leaders" and more "leadership" is one of the most unsavory, dangerous and un-American tendencies in political discourse. When Donald Trump was asked last week by Joe Scarborough what he made of an endorsement from Vladimir Putin — a thug who's probably murdered journalists and political opponents and more — the GOP presidential front-runner responded, "He's running his country, and at least he's a leader, unlike what we have in this country." Then he offered an incredibly dumb moral equivalency about how the United States also does "plenty of killing."
A Contrary Christmas Tale: How Germany Won WWII
One of the most enduring symbols of the Christmas season is a pine tree festooned with sparkling ornaments, adorned with crystalline splashes of snow, and circled with twinkling lights. Now picture this tree with a swastika on top where an angel should be perched, and you've transformed it into one of the most horrific artifacts of the modern world — the Nazis' attempt to co-opt a tradition in order to advertise a loathsome political program. Although it took a global alliance to defeat Hitler's armies on the battlefield, the ideology that enthralled Germany for a dozen years refused to be crushed. Indeed, the miasma of National Socialism continues to live and has crept into the cultural fiber of most Western nations, especially the United States.
Life, Fortune & Honor: Is Your Vote Enough?
Growing up in Spain as a young child through the age of 15, I did not have the opportunity to engage directly in many of the things other American kids enjoyed. Whether it was a football game, hanging out at a burger joint, or just enjoying a pack of Juicy Fruit, my upbringing did not include any of these things. Truthfully, though, I do not feel slighted in any way given the extraordinary opportunity I had to grow up in a foreign land and experience its culture and people.
Restoring a Sense of Gratitude
Many Americans still believe in this nation's enduring principles. It's easy, alas, for our gratitude to become perfunctory — more something we say than something we feel. But take it from someone who has traveled to many countries: A look at what some people around the globe endure can make your appreciation genuine.
A Country to Give Thanks For
The Middle East is in total chaos. Terrorism is only getting worse. We've got big economic, immigration and racial problems we can't solve. And we're in the middle of a presidential election that looks like it'll end badly for the country -- no matter whom we elect. With all this trouble, tragedy and unhappiness around the world and at home, it's easy to forget the good things we have.
The America-Basher in Chief Rolls On
How could America have twice elected a president who not only can't stand America but also won't perform his constitutional duty of defending it? Even some former administration officials and rank-and-file Democrats are finally recognizing that there is something strange about a commander in chief who declines to listen to his advisers on terrorism, won't read their daily briefings and is uninterested in their threat assessments.
Giving Thanks at Thanksgiving ... but Not to God
In 1789, America's first president proclaimed a "day of public thanksgiving and prayer." George Washington implored the heavens to "pardon our national and other transgressions" and urged the citizenry to practice "true religion and virtue." In 1863, Abraham Lincoln urged his countrymen to set aside the last Thursday of November "as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens."
Commander in Chief 'Not Interested' in 'Winning'
What might become the defining statement of his atrocious presidency.
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Feminization of America Is Bad for the World
Last week, The New York Times published an article, "Sweeping Away Gender-Specific Toys and Labels," that contained three sentences that explain one of the most important phenomena in American life.
Superman Takes on the Cops, Batman Takes on Gentrification, and Captain America Takes on Border Control
One of the most depressing features of modern American life lies in the left's total war on every facet of our shared culture. It isn't enough to produce movies with Steve Carell and Julianne Moore and Ellen Page about lesbian partners seeking legal protection for conveyance of property. Now, even comic books must be hijacked in order to promote leftist messaging.
Humility in New Hampshire
In his 1850 short story, "The Great Stone Face," Nathaniel Hawthorne described the legend of the Old Man of the Mountain: "At some future day, a child should be born hereabouts, who was destined to become the greatest and noblest personage of his time, and whose countenance, in manhood, should bear an exact resemblance to the Great Stone Face." In this short story, immortalizing this geological structure in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, a series of high profile figures is each declared to be the front runner, until the local citizen, Ernest, determines that the resemblance is lacking.
Feeling Good About America on a Chilly Autumn Evening
Don't you love it when something heartwarming happens to you unexpectedly? That happened to me on October 1. My friend Ron invited me to go with him to Cleveland to see the game that night between the Indians and the Minnesota Twins. Neither of us had any connection to either of the teams (I'm a lifelong Tigers fan and Ron is a lifelong Pirates fan) but I had never seen Progressive (formerly Jacobs) Field before, so off we went.
Tracking America's Suicide
Amidst a plethora of sensational news reports elbowing each other to seize first place in America's national consciousness, there is a story that has lurked beneath media radar that teaches us much more about the status of our country than school shootings, Russian bombings in Syria, Iranian perfidy, Hillary Clinton's makeover attempts, and Republican candidates' daily presidential gymnastics.
School Cancels 'America Day'
Patriotic teenagers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, showed up to class Wednesday waving American flags in defiance of educators who canceled "America Day" over fears it might upset students who don't consider themselves to be American. Administrators at Jackson Hole High School pulled the plug on "America Day," citing concerns that celebrating the USA would alienate some of their young people, the Jackson Hole Daily reported.
Apologizing for America Day
A Wyoming school canceled "America Day" so immigrant students don't feel excluded.