Entertainment Overnight -- Patriotic Holiday Edition

Happy Fourth, everyone.

Poignant Republican Party President Quote of the Day

From also-Republican Party President Theodore Roosevelt, ironically enough.

“Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president or any other public official, save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth, whether about the president or anyone else.”

Quote of the Day -- Timely

"The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again."

--Meghan McCain, today, at her father's funeral

Quote of the Day -- Independence Day Edition

"Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children's children. Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance." 

--President Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt 

With thanks to the Sierra Club for the reminder.

Happy Fourth, everyone.

Happy 4th of July! Independence Day!

On this day, July 4...

--1804, Author Nathaniel Hawthorne, born;
---1826, in one of history's notable coincidences, former U.S. Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died, 50 years to the day after the Declaration of Independence was adopted;

---1863, Union troops defeated Confederate forces in a battle at Vicksburg, Mississippi. Independence Day was not celebrated in that city for many, many years after;

--1872, - Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States, born;
---1895, the poem America the Beautiful, by Wellesley College Professor Katherine Lee Bates, was published. The poem with music by Samuel A. Ward was published as a song in 1910;

---1939, Lou Gehrig gave his "...luckiest man on the face of the Earth..." speech in announcing his retirement from the New York Yankees;

---1986, more than 250 sailing ships and the United States' biggest fireworks display honored the Statue of Liberty in its 100th birthday year;

---1997, NASA's Pathfinder reached Mars to become the first U.S. spacecraft to land on the planet in more than two decades;

--1998, Malia Obama, daughter of former President Barack Obama, born.

Happy Fourth, everyone! Stay safe! Enjoy!

Source/link:

ArcaMax Publishing: News & Entertainment by Email

A Very Timely Patriotism Quote

Quote of the Day -- On Patriotism

"We Americans claim to be a peace-loving people. We hate bloodshed; we are opposed to violence. Yet we go into spasms of joy over the possibility of projecting dynamite bombs from flying machines upon helpless citizens. We are ready to hang, electrocute, or lynch anyone, who, from economic necessity, will risk his own life in the attempt upon that of some industrial magnate. Yet our hearts swell with pride at the thought that America is becoming the most powerful nation on earth, and that she will eventually plant her iron foot on the necks of all other nations.

Such is the logic of patriotism."

--Emma Goldman, "What is Patriotism?", 1908

On Memorial Day -- You Want Patriotism?

So it's Memorial Day.

So yes, honor the soldiers. Honor their sacrifice. Honor their sacrifices.

But let's go a step or more further.

To all the government representatives out there, you want patriotism? Do you expect it?

Fine, you want patriotism, then give us the following, do the following--

• Stop creating wars for the soldiers to fight and die in.
• In fact, see to it we bring home thousands of our military, scattered all over the planet.
• Shrink the Defense budget. That's right, shrink it. It's bloated, it's wasteful and it weakens us, weakens the nation.
• Then, internally, give us a country that's more just.
• Give us a country with at least less wealth inequality. Fight wealth inequality, large and small.
• Give us a nation that works, even fights for those with less.
• Work for, fight for a nation that's not segregated.
• Write bills to fight racism and yes, racists.
• Write bills to fight segregation, racial segregation.
• Work to make our schools better. All our schools, for all of us, not just for those who can afford Charter and private schools.
• Fight for the common man and woman, the working man and woman of America.
• Work for the middle class.
• Heck, work for the lower classes. So many of you call and consider yourself Christian and Christians.
• Fight to overturn Citizens United.
• Work to end "dark money" in our government and politics. We deserve to know where campaign contributions come from.
• Better yet, fight to end campaign contributions entirely. Let's do away with the problems of campaign contributions.
• Fight to bring back the Fairness Doctrine so people give two sides, minimum, to each news story in our media. They're our airwaves, after all. 
• Work to ensure clean air, water and soil and for all.
• Stop working and fighting for only or mostly the already-wealthy and corporations.
• Stop working more or only for your political party and work for the nation. Be statesmen and women in your governmental work

In short, give us back our nation. All of us. Work for all of us.

When you do this, you make us all better and you make the nation stronger. In doing these things, you would truly "make America great again."

Then we'll talk patriotism.

Quote of the Day -- Timely

Not only was H.L Mencken correct here but he and his quote are extremely relevant and poignant now, what with sports figures taking a knee about justice and injustice in our nation.

Quotes of the Day

"Nationalism is our form of incest, is our idolatry, is our insanity. 'Patriotism' is its cult. It should hardly be necessary to say, that by "patriotism" I mean that attitude which puts the own nation above humanity, above the principles of truth and justice; not the loving interest in one's own nation, which is the concern with the nation's spiritual as much as with its material welfare — never with its power over other nations. Just as love for one individual which excludes the love for others is not love, love for one's country which is not part of one's love for humanity is not love, but idolatrous worship." 

--Erich Fromm, in "The Sane Society" (1955)

"We Americans claim to be a peace-loving people. We hate bloodshed; we are opposed to violence. Yet we go into spasms of joy over the possibility of projecting dynamite bombs from flying machines upon helpless citizens. We are ready to hang, electrocute, or lynch anyone, who, from economic necessity, will risk his own life in the attempt upon that of some industrial magnate. Yet our hearts swell with pride at the thought that America is becoming the most powerful nation on earth, and that she will eventually plant her iron foot on the necks of all other nations.

Such is the logic of patriotism."

--Emma Goldman, "What is Patriotism?" (1908)

"True patriotism isn't cheap. It's about taking on a fair share of the burdens of keeping America going.

Those who earn tens of millions of dollars a year but pay less than 14 percent of their incomes in taxes, and argue the rich should pay even less, are not true patriots.

Those who defend indefensible tax loopholes, such as the "carried interest" loophole that allows private-equity managers to treat their incomes as capital gains even if they risk no income of their own, are not true patriots.

Those who avoid taxes by putting huge amounts of their earnings into IRAs via foreign tax shelters are not true patriots.

Those who want to cut programs that benefit the poor -- Food stamps, child nutrition, Pell grants, Medicaid -- so that they can get a tax cut for themselves and their affluent friends-- are not true patriots." 

--Robert Reich, economist, writer, author, professor and former Labor Secretary of President Bill Clinton's Cabinet

America, Who You Are, In Three Statistics

America, I don't think you know who you are.

Oh, sure, you kind of know but I don't think you're really looking at yourself and seeing who and what you are.

So with that in mind, America, Americans, I give you three--just three--statistics, just three facts that really show who you are, what you support and what you're about. Forsooth:

Number one.  Health care.

Once again, U.S. has most expensive, least effective health care

US Spends More on Health Care Than Other High-Income Nations But  Has Lower Life Expectancy, Worse Health

U.S. Healthcare: Most Expensive and Worst Performing

Our health care and health care system is, far and away, the most expensive health care system in the world, bar none.

For all we pay, we have lousy health and even extremely poor health outcomes.

Of the top 17 industrialized nations, we have the worst mortality rates. Translation: We die sooner than the 16 nations before us on that list.

Second, number two of our statistics, on top of all that spending and costs, we are ranked number 31, in 31st place in life expectancy, internationally. Check it out.

List of countries by life expectancy

Of the 30 nations ahead of us on this list of life expectancy, all have universal health care. Imagine that. Oh, yeah, and most are---GASP--SOCIALIST nations. Heaven forbid, right?

Third and finally, there is this statistic and fact, America. Again, this is who you are.

U.S. Military Spending Dwarfs Rest of World

US Spends More on Military Than Next Seven Countries Combined

How Military and Education Spending Compare in America

US spends more on military than next 8 nations combined

These, my fellow Americans, are your--our--priorities.

Sure, we bemoan our students and schools failing and sure, we lament our health care is outrageously high--so high we can't afford it and that it's also the number one cause of bankruptcy in the nation. And yes, we don't have enough money, we think and say, for our roads and bridges and highways and sewers and airports and infrastructure or anything else, really, but BY GOD, WE HAVE BILLIONS AND TRILLIONS FOR "DEFENSE"! Nobody has more money for bombs and jets and warships or blows things up better than us.

So there you go, America. In three quick little "nutshells", so to speak, this is who and what you are.

Apparently, you think this is all not just a good idea but that it's also somehow sustainable.

Links:  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy

Gross, wasteful defense spending

The 10 Most Blatantly Wasteful Defense Items

Our Obscene, Huge, Immoral Defense Spending

Pentagon buries evidence of $125 billion 

in bureaucratic waste

The Pentagon Could Reach a Historic Level 

of Wasteful Spending

5 Insanely Wasteful Projects the Pentagon 

is Spending Your Money

Our Obscene, Huge, Immoral Defense Spending

Nearly half of states are facing budget shortfalls. 

Here’s why that matters.

Teddy Roosevelt On the Presidency---From Our Own KC Star

"The President is merely the most important among a large number of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and disinterested service to the Nation as a whole. Therefore it is absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when he does right. 

Any other attitude in an American citizen is both base and servile. 

To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else."

--President Theodore Roosevelt, Kansas City Star, May 7, 1918