Happy Fourth of July! (not the one the president envisions, characterized by the Washington Post as "a gaudy display of military hardware that is more in keeping with a banana republic than the world’s oldest democracy.” Americans “shouldn’t be lured by the trappings or the spectacle or the rhetoric of Mr. Trump,” says the editorial board the Washington Post, instead suggesting they should “claim the day for values embraced by the founders: freedom, tolerance and respect for all.”)
Full text at
https://www.washingtonpost.com/…/6c8527b8-9c2e-11e9-85d6-52…https://www.washingtonpost.com/…/6c8527b8-9c2e-11e9-85d6-52…Fireworks pictures: in Hartford at a recent baseball game and at the July 4, 1984 display in DC.
Two of my nephews, taking exception to my post, responded.
Mike wrote:
For the last time... we do not live in a democracy; we live in a constitutional republic.
But I do agree that a parade with tanks is something that is reminiscent of Stalin or Mao.
Tom wrote:
I gotta agree with Mike, Jack, I didn’t see you upset against Barak when he was bombing 7 different countries killing innocent civilians, but somehow a parade with military tanks seems to upset you, doesn’t that sound a little hypocritical? BTW I am not a trump supporter.
I quickly replied on my smartphone:
Tell the folks at the Washington Post. I'm just the messenger quoting the press. BTW it's "Barach."
The response from Tom:
I’m not absolving you because you’re pointing the finger at someone else, you repeated it, take responsibility for the content, you would’ve repeated it if you didn’t feel the same, when you were younger you called out anyone who was doing immoral things, now you only seem to look at one side, ignoring the other, the man I used to look up to has become tribalistic, bias and one-sided, I’m trying to get you to look in the mirror.
Rather than carry on a repartee on Facebook, I offer my response here:
Sorry, Tom, that my response about "just quoting" didn't include the intended "wry wink" emoji (which I just edited in) since I was on my smartphone responding to you (I could never make my ol' thumbs work like they do for the adept "thumb-typers" I see). And I’ve been busy both with other projects as well as with thinking about your comment.
So now that I'm at my computer, I want to make the time to say, first of all, that I'm sorry for what must have come across as a flippantly dismissive and deflective response to your reply.
In truth, my "Happy 4th" wish was made as an affirmation of the need to keep this national observance true to the vision of the founders, like that of John Adams. He observed in his letter to Abigail:
"The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”
Adams referred to the "Second Day” because that was the day the Second Continental Congress approved the motion for independence.
Considering that the colonies were setting out to back up their severing of ties with England by taking up arms against the armies of one of the most powerful nations in the world, Adams might well have written into his glowing prediction references to a show of military might.
It's apropos to note that the people of Philadelphia fired guns to mark the moment that the news of the resolution was declared. But there was no rolling out of cannon and such.
The “Salute to America” theme included the president’s remarks to honor the five branches of the U.S. military. While opposing war under various administrations of both colors, the opposition of many—mine among them—was against the policy-makers, not the messengers, the military. I want you to know that my opposition to national policies has always been bipartisan. Over the years, I’ve protested against misguided policies unworthy of who we are during administrations of the two major parties. The carrying out of a “Spectacular Fourth” as envisioned by the president was tantamount to what Secretary of Interior James Watts did in 1983 by banning the Beach Boys as the lead for the Fourth of July festival on the National Mall and replacing them with Wayne Newton. Watt's professed a bias against having a Rock music band because, in his opinion, such groups brought the wrong element to what should be a family event. His switch came as a demonstration of personal bias about what people like at 4th of July celebrations. Watts and the president are both wrong in imposing their personal preference about what the 4th should be. Following that 1983 4th of July, Watts was summoned to the Oval Office to have his moralistic dictates in popular music lightly mocked by President Reagan. The Secretary of the Interior left the Oval Office carrying a “plaster trophy of a foot with a bullet hole in it.” Many people would award the same trophy to anyone imposing their personal preference on what the 4th should be, either with bans of music genre or with show of U.S. military might—even the president of the United States. The reaction of many to the president's "rained-on parade" is that we keep the Fourth of July celebration a celebration of freedom, tolerance and respect for all.
