America’s response to 9/11 was basically to blow off the entire question of why it happened, change the set-design behind the same old us-vs.-evil commies cowboy-movie worldview, and to patch the hole blown in our self-esteem with a crude mix of stage-managed self-congratulation and sentimental claptrap. Our failure to actually win our subsequent self-declared war on the evildoers we explained away by using a modern innovation, i.e. taking a New-Agey approach to our shortcomings and forgiving ourselves for our little imperfections. In the Dr. Phil age, actual achievement isn’t important, so long as you’re comfortable with yourself! Make a list every morning, think about the good things in life! Living in Madison Avenue’s irony age helps also — when even Tony Soprano pours his heart out to a shrink every week, it’s not hard to convince Americans that they’re still tough, even though Osama bin Laden is still doing bong hits on Al Jazeera five years after we boldly promised to kick his ass.
Whatever happened to actually being tough? What happened to speaking softly while we carry that big stick? Of staring problems bravely in the face, of taking the world seriously? History long ago washed that generation of “us” away, along with the world we still think we live in.
Matt hits on a very important point – America’s inability to self-correct. This only happens when you are able to look at yourself and acknowledge that you have made mistakes and can live your life differently going forward. It takes courage. People like George W. Bush has no real courage and therefore can never admit he is wrong. Thus, he cannot self-correct and his life is one failure after another.
America can do better than this and can do better than George W. Bush. Let’s become the great nation we used to be. Bushworld promises an ugly world of endless war, hatred, mistrust and pollution. Reject it.