This is an excellent article. You are right, most people only think about the present and that, for them, is total reality.
Just because you didn’t live through a period of time does not mean that you should not know about it. During my years growing up, my mother and grandmother talked to me about the Great Depression. I was aware that money was very tight. They talked about food and making it last through the week. In her later years my mother talked about what ice cream meant to her when she was a child – that it was something that tasted so wonderful, but you had to have the nickel to buy it. And that was not always possible.
My father and uncles were part of the military that gave us a secure world after 1945.
I know the stories of past generations in my family, the reason being is that I want to know.
I have travelled in Africa and seen places that lack all the basics and the comforts that we take for granted.
I have seen the poverty. I’ve seen what it is like when people cannot get knee or hip replacement surgeries. When they cannot get cataract surgery. When they have high blood pressure and cannot get a doctor or medication. When they don’t have proper sanitation. No indoor plumbing and no toilets.
I’ve seen a city that has no traffic lights or stop signs. And the bullet holes in the buildings.
In the west, in North America, we have been so blessed. Instead of building on the blessings, we are throwing them away. And we complain nonstop about everything.
I really appreciate the facts and the references to back them up. As we see the Right burning down all of our accomplishments it is made so clear that part of the problem is (maybe always is) that we don't notice things that do work...until they stop working. We don't know what we've got til it's gone...
So well summarized and explained. We need to have this conversation loudly and clearly shared to remind ourselves of what we’re in danger of losing and what we have so often taken for granted.
What a fabulous article! Thanks for reminding us of the recent past and all the good we achieved. The Democrats have got to tell these stories of our greatness in years gone past to let the younger generations know what we have done and remind the older generations of what we achieved. We must stop the lies that Trump tells daily regarding our achievements.
If we can get the truth of our history out to the whole nation loudly, maybe we can get our nation on a different path.
I completely understand your feelings. I feel the same way today. I am 73 and have been so proud of my country for decades. These days are NOT those times. I am sad, embarrassed, disappointed and angry. The Heritage Foundation has really ruined our country and unfortunately the rest of us were in hiding and unaware. I asked myself daily "How did we let this happen?"
Where are you from? I asked out of jealousy. I'd love to live somewhere else right now.
My friend. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being "proud" of the place where you live. It is called patriotism (the real kind, not the kind of those who tried a coup in 2021).
When "being proud" is translated as "we are the best and the rest are hellholes" it turns into nationalism and that my friend is an entirely different ballgame.
Personally I am from Belgium. I am not "proud" of Belgium as for me it is nothing but the piece of land I was born out of the union of two Belgian parents. I am "proud" of my hometown Ghent because I think it is one of the nicest towns in the world (I've travelled the US, Europe, Africa and even China). I have absolutely no "proud" feelings for the part of the country where I live, Flanders. The main reason is that rightwing nutcase nationalists are waving with flags and claiming to be 'the greatest', whatever that means.
It's far too easy to feel that these are the "worst times ever" and "I am a victim". Life is sometimes hard and it has always been thus. Many of our young people today see and feel that the world of their parents is out of reach. While there is truth to this attitude, believing it (and checking out) simply propagates the same situation.
My great aunt (sister of my paternal grandmother) lost her love in WW1. She lived a long and productive life but remained what they used to call a "spinster" until the day she died. My parents grew up during and lived through the Great Depression and WWII. Let's just say that my Mom was thrifty and my Dad, conservative.
I lost friends and relatives during the Vietnam War. One of my coworkers bought her first house with an 18% variable rate mortgage. I rolled pennies to buy gas and then sat in lines on alternate days to buy it.
Young people now have different challenges. This could change radically if they do one thing: register now and VOTE when election day comes around.
Well then CONTEXT, and how ‘Make America Great Again’ is a concept that Trump is harnessing to make *himself & his bank account ‘Great again’ should be considered.
— He has used this idea to falsely imply that America *wasn’t great as it was … and now look at the economy stagnating & headed downwards.
— HIS brand of ‘greatness’ means the subjugation & harming of Allie’s economies … when it was their friendship that greatly enabled America’s greatness.
Yes, there are a great many negatives associated with the swaggering braggadocio type of ‘greatness’ of Trumpublicans!
Biden’s quiet, nose-to-the-grindstone work ethic ensured America’s genuine greatness … as did many other more modest presidents.
The world no longer trusts or respects the current iteration of America, not even a majority of its own citizens.
Hi Louise, I tried to say that in all of the mentioned "great" countries all other countries were regarded as "not great at all" and thus to be there for the taking regardless of what the inhabitants of those invaded countries thought of it.
I should have mentioned Putin's "great" Russia. Putin who regards all neighboring countries as provinces who have not realized yet that they are part of "great" Russia.
Clearer now? This is not a semantic proposition of the meaning of the word great.
Another outstanding piece from Mr. Malinowski. It is so true that "good news" does not garner any press. So true that we take so much for granted. So true how the proposed changes under a deranged Administration could roll back many, many decades of progress. Please, please come back to government work. And continue to speak out everywhere and anywhere you can.
Sure ok I get the point here- Trump's idea of rolling back to 1989, or 1950, or 1850 is obviously not 'great', and there are accomplishments worth noting.....but this article glosses over so many things where America is decidedly not great, especially when compared to other wealthy industrialized nations..
Certainly many things are far less great just in the past seven months...but American's lack of greatness isn't a partisan issue.
Malinowski mentions health issues a few times. He doesn't mention:
The US spends twice as much on average health care than the world's other wealthy nations, spending far more on administrative costs and far less on long term care.
Compared to these same countries, the US is dead last in infant mortality, life expectancy and safety during childbirth, and rakes low in other basic health result metrics.
(To be fair to Malinowski, he has advocated for better health care policies...but these problems have persisted over many administrations).
Some more points where the US is ither first place, or last place:
The US has by far the highest rate of incarceration of any industrialized country, and is among the highest rates in the world. The rate of incarceration of African-Americans is appallingly high. The US is one of the only wealthy countries that still has the death penalty, which of course is applied in a highly racially biased manner here.
For all that imprisonment, the US has a far higher murder rate per capita than any other wealthy nation, and is behind only a handful of countries total. Many much poorer countries have far lower murder rats than the US.
Only China beats the US in carbon dioxide emissions, but the US has 50% higher per capita emission rate than China. Cumulatively over decades, no other country comes even close to contributing to climate change than the US.
And of course, there is no country that spends even close to as much as the US on weapons of mass destruction. The US spends more than the next several countries combined. The US exports more weapons that anyone, by far.
The US owns the most guns per per capita by far than any other country, and is at the top of the most cars per capita, outside a few small island nations. The US eats more meat per capita than any other country, save a few small very small nations (the total US consumption dwarfs these countries)
That pretty much sums up the US right there.
Want to Make America Great (maybe for the first time)? - stop driving so many cars so much, stop eating meat, stop buying guns....that will be a good start.
It really isn't helping to just say the US is so great..it wasn't before and it isn't now. It certainly is worse now under Trump, but none of these problems are new.
Is this all something to be really proud of? An honest question....and again, obviously Trump will make this all worse, no argument there....
I stand with those that have been fighting for change despite the mainstream tide of US history and culture...those people have always been there and continue to be here...but we are constantly fought against. We see it now the mainstream Democrats fighting Zohran Mamdani in NYC, silencing David Hogg at the DNC, constantly censuring and criticizing Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar in Congress...
Everything good in the US came from struggle and protest.
Nah. America is home to millions of racist morons who are just fine with this criminal regime.
America has NEVER faced up to its original sin of racism and slavery, or of the slaughter and degradation of the original peoples who resided here, nor has America accepted that amends must be made…and, until that happens, all the previous talk of freedom and exceptionality is just empty propaganda.
No other advanced country in the world has people going bankrupt to cover their medical bills, nor has gun violence as the leading cause of death in its children. All those other countries’ citizens are healthier and happier than here in “exceptional” America.
We’ve been sold a fairy tale of a history all our lives that has zero basis in reality.
This is an excellent article. You are right, most people only think about the present and that, for them, is total reality.
Just because you didn’t live through a period of time does not mean that you should not know about it. During my years growing up, my mother and grandmother talked to me about the Great Depression. I was aware that money was very tight. They talked about food and making it last through the week. In her later years my mother talked about what ice cream meant to her when she was a child – that it was something that tasted so wonderful, but you had to have the nickel to buy it. And that was not always possible.
My father and uncles were part of the military that gave us a secure world after 1945.
I know the stories of past generations in my family, the reason being is that I want to know.
I have travelled in Africa and seen places that lack all the basics and the comforts that we take for granted.
I have seen the poverty. I’ve seen what it is like when people cannot get knee or hip replacement surgeries. When they cannot get cataract surgery. When they have high blood pressure and cannot get a doctor or medication. When they don’t have proper sanitation. No indoor plumbing and no toilets.
I’ve seen a city that has no traffic lights or stop signs. And the bullet holes in the buildings.
In the west, in North America, we have been so blessed. Instead of building on the blessings, we are throwing them away. And we complain nonstop about everything.
Well said, MariElena! 🫶🏽
Thank you for the facts from the past & current facts (& lies)
I really appreciate the facts and the references to back them up. As we see the Right burning down all of our accomplishments it is made so clear that part of the problem is (maybe always is) that we don't notice things that do work...until they stop working. We don't know what we've got til it's gone...
A bit of Joni Mitchell nostalgia there? 😎
It is and we want it back!
So well summarized and explained. We need to have this conversation loudly and clearly shared to remind ourselves of what we’re in danger of losing and what we have so often taken for granted.
What a fabulous article! Thanks for reminding us of the recent past and all the good we achieved. The Democrats have got to tell these stories of our greatness in years gone past to let the younger generations know what we have done and remind the older generations of what we achieved. We must stop the lies that Trump tells daily regarding our achievements.
If we can get the truth of our history out to the whole nation loudly, maybe we can get our nation on a different path.
Saying that your country is great implies that all other countries are not great.
You see my dear US friends, this is part of the problem of how you are all perceived by the rest of the world.
I like (or rather used to like) the US. Had wonderful experiences both for business and pleasure.
But I would never ever want to live in your country.
No decent healthcare, still drilling more oil, too much religious zealots, steaks with hormones, fat food, I'll stop here.
I completely understand your feelings. I feel the same way today. I am 73 and have been so proud of my country for decades. These days are NOT those times. I am sad, embarrassed, disappointed and angry. The Heritage Foundation has really ruined our country and unfortunately the rest of us were in hiding and unaware. I asked myself daily "How did we let this happen?"
Where are you from? I asked out of jealousy. I'd love to live somewhere else right now.
My friend. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being "proud" of the place where you live. It is called patriotism (the real kind, not the kind of those who tried a coup in 2021).
When "being proud" is translated as "we are the best and the rest are hellholes" it turns into nationalism and that my friend is an entirely different ballgame.
Personally I am from Belgium. I am not "proud" of Belgium as for me it is nothing but the piece of land I was born out of the union of two Belgian parents. I am "proud" of my hometown Ghent because I think it is one of the nicest towns in the world (I've travelled the US, Europe, Africa and even China). I have absolutely no "proud" feelings for the part of the country where I live, Flanders. The main reason is that rightwing nutcase nationalists are waving with flags and claiming to be 'the greatest', whatever that means.
Greetings and have a nice WE!
Marc
It's far too easy to feel that these are the "worst times ever" and "I am a victim". Life is sometimes hard and it has always been thus. Many of our young people today see and feel that the world of their parents is out of reach. While there is truth to this attitude, believing it (and checking out) simply propagates the same situation.
My great aunt (sister of my paternal grandmother) lost her love in WW1. She lived a long and productive life but remained what they used to call a "spinster" until the day she died. My parents grew up during and lived through the Great Depression and WWII. Let's just say that my Mom was thrifty and my Dad, conservative.
I lost friends and relatives during the Vietnam War. One of my coworkers bought her first house with an 18% variable rate mortgage. I rolled pennies to buy gas and then sat in lines on alternate days to buy it.
Young people now have different challenges. This could change radically if they do one thing: register now and VOTE when election day comes around.
I don't see how "saying that your country is great implies that all other countries are not great."
Dear Irena,
Not everybody thinks like you do.
The country of the Austrian corporal was "great".
The country of Josef Stalin was "great".
The country of Mao Tse Tung was "great".
The country of emperor Hirohito was "great".
The country of Napoleon Bonaparte was "great".
The country of Queen Victoria was "great".
Do you begin to grasp what the concept of "a great country" means in history?
With kindest regards,
Marc
This discussion is worthy of so very much more than a semantic argument over the meaning of the word "great".
Well then CONTEXT, and how ‘Make America Great Again’ is a concept that Trump is harnessing to make *himself & his bank account ‘Great again’ should be considered.
— He has used this idea to falsely imply that America *wasn’t great as it was … and now look at the economy stagnating & headed downwards.
— HIS brand of ‘greatness’ means the subjugation & harming of Allie’s economies … when it was their friendship that greatly enabled America’s greatness.
Yes, there are a great many negatives associated with the swaggering braggadocio type of ‘greatness’ of Trumpublicans!
Biden’s quiet, nose-to-the-grindstone work ethic ensured America’s genuine greatness … as did many other more modest presidents.
The world no longer trusts or respects the current iteration of America, not even a majority of its own citizens.
Hi Louise, I tried to say that in all of the mentioned "great" countries all other countries were regarded as "not great at all" and thus to be there for the taking regardless of what the inhabitants of those invaded countries thought of it.
I should have mentioned Putin's "great" Russia. Putin who regards all neighboring countries as provinces who have not realized yet that they are part of "great" Russia.
Clearer now? This is not a semantic proposition of the meaning of the word great.
Another outstanding piece from Mr. Malinowski. It is so true that "good news" does not garner any press. So true that we take so much for granted. So true how the proposed changes under a deranged Administration could roll back many, many decades of progress. Please, please come back to government work. And continue to speak out everywhere and anywhere you can.
Your stepdad was a real patriot; you can be so proud!
Hmm, is it though?
Sure ok I get the point here- Trump's idea of rolling back to 1989, or 1950, or 1850 is obviously not 'great', and there are accomplishments worth noting.....but this article glosses over so many things where America is decidedly not great, especially when compared to other wealthy industrialized nations..
Certainly many things are far less great just in the past seven months...but American's lack of greatness isn't a partisan issue.
Malinowski mentions health issues a few times. He doesn't mention:
The US spends twice as much on average health care than the world's other wealthy nations, spending far more on administrative costs and far less on long term care.
Compared to these same countries, the US is dead last in infant mortality, life expectancy and safety during childbirth, and rakes low in other basic health result metrics.
(To be fair to Malinowski, he has advocated for better health care policies...but these problems have persisted over many administrations).
Some more points where the US is ither first place, or last place:
The US has by far the highest rate of incarceration of any industrialized country, and is among the highest rates in the world. The rate of incarceration of African-Americans is appallingly high. The US is one of the only wealthy countries that still has the death penalty, which of course is applied in a highly racially biased manner here.
For all that imprisonment, the US has a far higher murder rate per capita than any other wealthy nation, and is behind only a handful of countries total. Many much poorer countries have far lower murder rats than the US.
Only China beats the US in carbon dioxide emissions, but the US has 50% higher per capita emission rate than China. Cumulatively over decades, no other country comes even close to contributing to climate change than the US.
And of course, there is no country that spends even close to as much as the US on weapons of mass destruction. The US spends more than the next several countries combined. The US exports more weapons that anyone, by far.
The US owns the most guns per per capita by far than any other country, and is at the top of the most cars per capita, outside a few small island nations. The US eats more meat per capita than any other country, save a few small very small nations (the total US consumption dwarfs these countries)
That pretty much sums up the US right there.
Want to Make America Great (maybe for the first time)? - stop driving so many cars so much, stop eating meat, stop buying guns....that will be a good start.
It really isn't helping to just say the US is so great..it wasn't before and it isn't now. It certainly is worse now under Trump, but none of these problems are new.
Is this all something to be really proud of? An honest question....and again, obviously Trump will make this all worse, no argument there....
I stand with those that have been fighting for change despite the mainstream tide of US history and culture...those people have always been there and continue to be here...but we are constantly fought against. We see it now the mainstream Democrats fighting Zohran Mamdani in NYC, silencing David Hogg at the DNC, constantly censuring and criticizing Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar in Congress...
Everything good in the US came from struggle and protest.
Our lives are more hygienic now than they used to be but not necessarily cheaper in other ways.
Nah. America is home to millions of racist morons who are just fine with this criminal regime.
America has NEVER faced up to its original sin of racism and slavery, or of the slaughter and degradation of the original peoples who resided here, nor has America accepted that amends must be made…and, until that happens, all the previous talk of freedom and exceptionality is just empty propaganda.
No other advanced country in the world has people going bankrupt to cover their medical bills, nor has gun violence as the leading cause of death in its children. All those other countries’ citizens are healthier and happier than here in “exceptional” America.
We’ve been sold a fairy tale of a history all our lives that has zero basis in reality.
Well said, Tom. And another way to think about things. Thank you for showing us how.