It’s quite the juxtaposition. One day we’re kissing and hugging and the next we’re pushing and shoving. It’s hard to say which is the cultural norm.
While many Americans celebrate the day after Thanksgiving by continuing to fuel this thing called Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, there’s another black Friday that has to be acknowledged.
That’s today, black Friday, with a small “b.” A Friday which, if we take a look at current events and circumstances, should serve as a benchmark for where we’re at, as a nation, right now. If we’re not at the bottom, we can see it from here.
Headlines blare with content that would spark shock and disbelief in the most idealistic among us, were it not so frequent.
Murder in the streets. A nationwide drug epidemic. Homelessness. Social injustice. Pandemic burnout. Political hostility. Supply chain woes. Inflation. Poverty. Hunger. And on and on.
We can call the United States the greatest nation on Earth all we want, and it may be, but these days it seems like our hold on that designation is very uncertain. And though it’s more satisfying, and apparently patriotic, to extol our many successes, if we don’t recognize our faults, and commit to change, then our successes will become irrelevant.
A black man is killed in Georgia and we rejoice when those accused of the crime are found guilty. If that’s what passes as a “good news” story these days, we’re setting the bar way too low.
The greatest country on earth shouldn’t be satisfied merely with punishment that fits the crime. The greatest country on earth should demand better. And take the steps necessary to see that crime, and all the other maladies mentioned above, are treated at their source, before they become full-blown epidemics.
Our leadership struggles to lead while our citizenry refuses to follow. The President’s approval rating is underwater…. only 42% think he’s doing a good job, while Congress sits at half that. And these are people WE elected!
Sorry to pour cold gravy over your leftover mashed potatoes, but on this black Friday, things aren’t so great.
We used to think of America as a “melting pot.” But we’re not. We don’t all look, think, or act, alike. We never have, and we never will. And although a monolithic culture may seem easier to manage, it also seems a little less… dynamic.
We’re really more of a “mosaic.” The USA… three hundred and thirty million unique pieces, each with its own identity and lifestyle.
We’ll always have our differences, but as long as more Americans want to see peace and prosperity than those who want turmoil and turbulence, we should be able to fix this thing, and make today, this black Friday, a footnote in history.
Friday, November 26th, 2021. The day we bottomed out and began the long ascent to greatness again.
Locally, things aren’t as bad as they are nationwide. But if we truly subscribe to E Pluribus Unum, we can’t ignore the problems that plague the nation. Our national motto has been described as… “an essential truth about both nature and human society – that we are stronger and more resilient together, embracing all of our diversity, than we are apart.” Amen to that.
The solutions are many… better parenting, quality education for all, targeted social services, and a system that offers more equal opportunity and less oppressive policies and attitudes.
And empathy.
Sunrise photo courtesy of Bugsy Sailor
The good news is that tomorrow is a new day. The sun will rise, and we’ll have another opportunity to work toward that more perfect union, if that’s truly our will. It’s incumbent upon each of us to do our part to reach that lofty goal, and reaffirm the title… “Greatest Nation on Earth.”
May today be the last black Friday.