July, 2018 - Frog in the Pot

Democracy is a fragile form of government. It consists of humankind’s loftiest principles supported only by rules created and monitored by altogether fallible beings: us. And we have proven over time to be unreliable and inconsistent caretakers of this precious system, at times even setting aside some of its central requirements in the service of very undemocratic impulses.

Both major American political parties have participated in these insults to democracy. We need only recall the shameful internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, or the gaming of Congressional voting districts (gerrymandering) to favor one or the other party. But never has a major party assaulted the premises and requirements of democracy so consistently, deeply and on so broad a front as has the current Republican Party. Continue reading “The GOP Abandons Democracy”

Our American flag has long been a complex symbol. First created in 1777, it has inspired patriotic unity in times of war and it has flown proudly over a nation that denied slaves their very humanity and women their full rights of citizenship. It has unblinkingly blended these disparate traditions when African American soldiers fought for the Stars and Stripes in segregated military units in World War II, during which it also flew over the internment camps in which Japanese Americans were incarcerated.

Today, long past the eradication of slavery and the extension of citizenship rights to women and minorities of color, the flag still registers the nation’s deep cultural and political divides. Its power as a unifying symbol of national values is regularly demonstrated in Fourth of July parades in towns both red and blue across the country. But presently it is also used as a political cudgel by the American president to condemn African American football players who take a knee at the national anthem to protest the denial of basic civil rights by racial inequality and police brutality. And refugee children forcibly separated from their families at the country’s southern border are required to stand and pledge allegiance to the flag while incarcerated in Texas.

Continue reading “What Does the Flag Stand For?”