I spent my teens and twenties being your classic wannabe punk rock kid. We burned flags, listened to Propagandhi and Against All Authority, the whole deal. Coming into my thirties and coming to grips with my limited view of the World, I became curious. I traveled a lot while going to school remotely anytime I could get free WiFi. This combination of experience and education has completely changed what it means to me to be an American.

Right off the bat, America both as an institution as well as on an individual level treats Black people like shit. Other minorities get it too but Black people have their own unique experience with American racism. If you don’t like me saying that, that sucks for you. The fact of the matter is Andrew Johnson and Rutherford B. Hayes are two of the greatest villains in the story of my country.

With that out of the way, do I feel personally attacked when slavery or redlining come up? Not really. Do I feel “White guilt”? Maybe. I’ve said and done things personally that I deeply regret and I do feel shame for that. All I can do is improve as a person going forward. What is more American than being able to take responsibility and improve instead of collapsing under its weight?

Our story is unique and at times ugly and the people that founded our nation were not all inclusive, but the idea of America and most of the people I have met here, are both awesome. When I think of the idea of our nation, John Winthrop is a major influence. Reagan famously quoted his work, A Model of Christian Charity.Winthrop had some interesting ideas about taking care of each other. He was, of course exclusionary to non-Christians but as stated above. The nation is complicated and filled with uncomfortable truths.

“If the time and occasion be ordinary, he is to give out of his abundance. Let him lay aside as God hath blessed him… Thou must observe whether thy brother hath present or probable or possible means of repaying thee, if there be none of those, thou must give him according to his necessity, rather than lend him as he requires”.

Translation: If you have a bunch of money and stuff that’s totally cool but you can’t let somebody else live without the bare necessities while enjoying your wonderful position. Winthrop says that God blessed the wealthy. I don’t know about all that, but I like taking care of the less fortunate.

Don’t worry, I am not about to ask you to read any religious pamphlets. Winthrop came to the New World to create a place where “Love is the bond of perfection” and where anybody with love in their hearts is closer to God. He believed this “love among Christians (or really, all of us) is a real thing, not imaginary”.

It’s a nice message, although heavily flavored with Christianity. That being said, the act of loving each other bringing us more in touch with our inherent goodness is a good concept. Very Golden Rule, indeed.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, in one of my favorite works Self-Reliance completely captures that idea. Emerson tells the reader to “Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.” While not a uniquely American idea, going your own way is certainly one of our defining features. I will also share my favorite quote, from paragraph 34. This shit rocked me the first time I read it.

“If our young men miscarry in their first enterprises, they lose all heart. If the young merchant

fails, men say he is ruined. If the finest genius studies at one of our colleges, and is not installed in

an office within one year afterwards in the cities or suburbs of Boston or New York, it seems to his friends and to himself that he is right in being disheartened, and in complaining the rest of his life.”

Right in the balls, man.

Emerson wasn’t the only great American writer to preach going to the beat of your own drum. Henry David Thoreau builds upon the idea of American individuality by saying:

“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears…”

Stepping to my own drummer took me a long time but I am in rhythm now.

This individualism makes the nation seem beautiful. I have been to quite a few places and met lots of other Americans and when we let our uniqueness shine through, we are at our best. As for our sordid history. It happened. You can’t erase it. You can’t pretend it didn’t exist. You certainly could not present an evidence based case stating that we don’t still feel these reverberations today. A person continues to write their story. A metaphorical living document that always has more to add.

Walt Whitman once said: “The United States are essentially the greatest poem… Here is not merely a nation but a teeming nation of nations… Here are the roughs and beards and space and ruggedness and nonchalance that the soul loves.”

All these amazing writers drive home rugged individualism but Whitman in particular points to our many “nations” within a nation as an asset and a beautiful thing to be written about. Our individualism is at its most powerful when we are a combined force and that is what makes us America. I have seen around 30 states and frankly, this place and the people in it kick ass.

As for my dad, he caught a charge for lighting off fireworks in Massachusetts when I was a kid and him drunkenly getting brought into custody by guys he hung out at the gun range with was hilarious. He was unexpectedly jolly.

Take care of each other and enjoy the 4^th. Patriot or not we have good food and we blow shit up, so get out there!

JTC