The Things I Love About America
Rhapsody in Red, White, and Blue
American pride has taken a beating over the years. Since 2001, Gallup has measured a steady decrease in the percentage of US adults who say they are “extremely” or “very proud” to be an American. This decline has taken place across every age cohort, with a 10-point drop among the Silent Generation, a 15-point drop among Baby Boomers and Gen X, and a 19-point drop among Millennials. As for Gen Z, just 41 percent say they’re very proud to be American.
I have mixed feelings about pride as a general concept. Believing, as I do, that virtually everything in life is ultimately governed by chance and luck, pride, especially over unquestionable accidents of birth, doesn’t make a whole lot of sense except as a political tool. But my quibble is largely semantic, because for most people, most of the time, saying you’re “proud” to be something is more or less synonymous with saying you’re “happy” to be it — a sentiment that’s much harder to object to. So am I proud to be an American? In the spirit in which that question is asked, yes, I am. And I think it’s very clear that many of my fellow Americans have lost perspective and allowed their outlook to become distorted by partisan politics, culture wars, media coverage, and the Internet. But I’m not interested in arguing for why you should love America. I’m not going to make the case for progress and optimism, or against jaded cynicism. Been there, done that. This July 4th, on the country’s 249th birthday, I’m simply going to share the things I love about the United States of America.
I love that America proactively took its independence by winning a war against a global empire rather than obediently carrying its water long enough to be gifted scraps of sovereignty in dribs and drabs. Am I throwing shade? Yeah, I guess I am. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love how much more badass America’s origin story is compared to some other English-speaking countries I could name.
I love that the US is a nation of immigrants. I love that almost every American has a story — inspiring, harrowing, or both — that takes them across the world within the past few generations. I love that America has long been — and remains — the number one dream destination for the world’s tired, poor, and huddled masses yearning to breathe free. I love the constant infusion of new people, new stories, new ideas, and new cultures. I love that I live within a 15-minute drive of a Chinese supermarket, a Korean supermarket, a Vietnamese supermarket, a Japanese market, a Mexican supermarket, two Indian supermarkets, two Turkish markets, and two Middle Eastern markets. I love that in America, the world comes to you. And I love that in the US, immigration and integration go hand in hand. I love that it’s not just a one-sided affair: that there’s a cultural give and take.
I love that America is a melting pot, a shameless cultural appropriator, and a proud cultural imperialist. It’s good to absorb cool things from elsewhere and make them your own, and it’s good to export the things you do well to others. I love the tremendous success the US has had on the world stage, both culturally and diplomatically, through the use of soft power, without the need to constantly assert hegemony with overwhelming military force like the empires of old. I love that our commerce, and brands, and clothing, and styles, and technology, and pop culture have achieved what no historical blood-drenched conquest ever could. I love that America rebuilds its enemies and turns them into allies. I love that countries such as Germany, Japan, and Vietnam, all nations the US once fought in major wars, are now partners on excellent terms.
I also love the open space of America. I love that our streets aren’t cramped, that air conditioning is the norm, that homes aren’t on top of each other, and that houses have big yards. I love that even here in New Jersey, in the most densely populated state in the union, I can’t drive in any direction without soon passing farms, preserved nature, empty land, countless big houses, and lots of swimming pools.
I love that the US has always prioritized freedom over safety to a much larger degree than its peers. I love that America enshrines free speech as a constitutional right and tolerates dissent, hate, and misinformation. There’s no bigger flex than to let even those who wish to see us destroyed have their say, secure in the knowledge that our principles will outlast their ignorance. It’s the ultimate big dick energy. I love that America will outlast Trump, and MAGA, and the embarrassing woke dead-enders, and the keffiyeh-wearing LARPers, and every other low-IQ movement in between.
I love that many of the critics who most loudly denounce America are themselves American and would never want to live anywhere else.
And I love that we are stronger because of them.
Happy July 4th.
See also: “To Improve Your Country, You Must Love It First”
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