 |
| The statue of Thomas Jefferson in his Washington memorial. Built during World War II, the memorial highlights diversity, equality and the need to always oppose tyranny |
WASHINGTON — The statue in the Jefferson Memorial is 19 feet tall, but it's the words carved in stone around the bronze figure that are truly monumental.
Such as these, from Jefferson's Declaration of Independence:
"WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS TO BE SELF-EVIDENT, THAT ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL."
"Again with the equality," I thought, forcing back a smile. And the diversity — "all men"? Really?
Can't have that. Not in 2025 America, where the same government that went to the expense and bother of erecting this palace to DEI is now scrubbing references to unfavored groups from official websites and giving certain people the bum's rush — out of the military, out of the country.
How long will this offense be tolerated now that intolerance is the latest dance craze? Envision a trio of Three Stooges administration lackeys. The same crew who flagged for removal from Department of Defense pages images of the the Enola Gay — the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima — because, ewww, "gay."
Imagine them showing up at the Jefferson Memorial in a blare of calliope music, a jumble of ladders and drop cloths and eye pokes, splattering plaster as they efface that forbidden "EQUAL" and slap on a more acceptable sentiment along the lines of "ALL MEN ARE CREATED ... MANLY."
"Nyuk nyuk nyuk, Moe, we soitenly are!"
Their next stop would have to be the Lincoln Memorial, where the Gettysburg Address covers one wall and goes straight into the DEI weeds: "FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO" (let's revert to lower case. These memorial caps look fine in marble but scream in print) "our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
"Alllllll men"? Yikes! Even immigrants who came here seeking refuge? Can't they be unceremoniously bundled in a van by masked police and shipped to East Africa?
Or men who identify as women? Of course they can be cashiered from the armed forces because ... well ... I'm not sure what the excuse is. They make our leader uncomfortable, perhaps.
Meanwhile, my friends on the left will drill down on "men," pointing out that women weren't included in all this hoo-ha about freedom. Flash: There was no electricity, either.
Are these really our choices? History as George Washington chopping down the cherry tree. "Father, I cannot tell a lie, I did it with my little hatchet." Or history as Thomas Jefferson, rapist and enslaver, who also did some other stuff?
Does it have to be celebration or revulsion? Can't we have the full spectrum? Glory and shame?
When I wasn't minding (though not jiggling or kissing) my new granddaughter in her new home, I strolled over to memorials. Not just the Jefferson and the Lincoln, but Martin Luther King Jr., who of course was caught speaking publicly about "dignity, equality and freedom." (I imagine the MAGA stooges will plaster that over with transcripts from J. Edgar Hoover's surveillance tapes.)
The underappreciated and thoughtful Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial — contrast it with the explosion of wreaths, stars and eagles that is the insipid World War II Memorial — seems practically ripped from the headlines.
To continue reading, click here.
Such as these, from Jefferson's Declaration of Independence:
"WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS TO BE SELF-EVIDENT, THAT ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL."
"Again with the equality," I thought, forcing back a smile. And the diversity — "all men"? Really?
Can't have that. Not in 2025 America, where the same government that went to the expense and bother of erecting this palace to DEI is now scrubbing references to unfavored groups from official websites and giving certain people the bum's rush — out of the military, out of the country.
How long will this offense be tolerated now that intolerance is the latest dance craze? Envision a trio of Three Stooges administration lackeys. The same crew who flagged for removal from Department of Defense pages images of the the Enola Gay — the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima — because, ewww, "gay."
Imagine them showing up at the Jefferson Memorial in a blare of calliope music, a jumble of ladders and drop cloths and eye pokes, splattering plaster as they efface that forbidden "EQUAL" and slap on a more acceptable sentiment along the lines of "ALL MEN ARE CREATED ... MANLY."
"Nyuk nyuk nyuk, Moe, we soitenly are!"
Their next stop would have to be the Lincoln Memorial, where the Gettysburg Address covers one wall and goes straight into the DEI weeds: "FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO" (let's revert to lower case. These memorial caps look fine in marble but scream in print) "our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."
"Alllllll men"? Yikes! Even immigrants who came here seeking refuge? Can't they be unceremoniously bundled in a van by masked police and shipped to East Africa?
Or men who identify as women? Of course they can be cashiered from the armed forces because ... well ... I'm not sure what the excuse is. They make our leader uncomfortable, perhaps.
Meanwhile, my friends on the left will drill down on "men," pointing out that women weren't included in all this hoo-ha about freedom. Flash: There was no electricity, either.
Are these really our choices? History as George Washington chopping down the cherry tree. "Father, I cannot tell a lie, I did it with my little hatchet." Or history as Thomas Jefferson, rapist and enslaver, who also did some other stuff?
Does it have to be celebration or revulsion? Can't we have the full spectrum? Glory and shame?
When I wasn't minding (though not jiggling or kissing) my new granddaughter in her new home, I strolled over to memorials. Not just the Jefferson and the Lincoln, but Martin Luther King Jr., who of course was caught speaking publicly about "dignity, equality and freedom." (I imagine the MAGA stooges will plaster that over with transcripts from J. Edgar Hoover's surveillance tapes.)
The underappreciated and thoughtful Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial — contrast it with the explosion of wreaths, stars and eagles that is the insipid World War II Memorial — seems practically ripped from the headlines.
To continue reading, click here.
I'm sure no one in the current regime cares one whit about what Jefferson ever wrote, including anything in the Declaration of Independence or that line pledging to be against tyranny, as they are supporting tyranny right now.
ReplyDeleteThey certainly would never agree to the last line, "We mutually pledge our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor", they have no honor & never have had any!
you are sure about that are you clark? a bit hyperbolic perhaps? just as our kind hosts writing today leads down a path frought with contradiction , your comment smacks of absolutism and a lack of facts to support your allegations.
Deleteprogressives by their nature strive to move forward. being stuck in the mire of accusation and counter accusations does not serve our movement well. lets get our house in order so that we may defeat the conservatives at the ballot box.
vitriol and animosity while understandable do not foster an effective strategy. they are a failed tactic of the previous election. lets start to move forward with intention and see if enough others will join us that our side can regain power
So you basically admit to being a wing nut troll!
DeleteOff topic but THANK YOU for recommending Gene Weingarten and The Fiddler in the Subway. His research and writing are brilliant. I have learned so much!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad. Gene is the best.
DeleteYour post brings up two notes.
ReplyDeleteFirst, we seem to forget -- or not even talk about -- how often our past is plastered over. While i know the point of your piece, it does bring up the fears in me that we are that close to the continued rewriting of historic and factual items. Let's not forget that John Ashcroft ordered blue curtains draped over the Spirit of Justice and Majesty of Law in the great hall of the department of Justice so that people wouldn't see the bare breasts of a statue during one of his televised speeches. Or that nearly every statue penis in congress had a fig leaf placed over it during the 1800s. I'm not sure how many of them remain, but i often wonder how conservatives manage to procreate.
And secondly, the digital world is awash with MechaHitler talk this morning as Elon Musk's AI Chat-bot Gork has abandoned "logic" and begun circulating antisemitic sentiments and even floating the idea that Adolf Hitler is a figure worth of admiration. This comes a week after its code was updated because it was deemed to be too left leaning. what a world to live in.
As i was drinking my morning coffee it dawned on me. I've often spent time trying to explain why liberal ideas and ideals are worthy. And while i haven't settled on something worth sharing or using as a call to arms, I do always come back to the definition of liberal -- or at least what it was pre 2000, before it became "politicized;" though i do believe in policies that are socially progressive and promote social welfare. Definitions all seem to congeal around the idea that it is one who is "concerned with broadening a person's general knowledge and experience, rather than with technical or professional training."
Why does this matter? It seems that you and Grok have identified the major difference between the right and the left. The only way the Right can function and exists, is if you remove all of the facts, and rewrite the truth.
No, Democrats aren't perfect, but I will certainly never vote for someone who is a moderate, or right of left center. And as current events continue to support my theories, I'm not sure I will be able to respect anyone who aligns themselves with or agrees with the right.
If the only way your opinions and actions can be defended is by reprogramming and Automaton, you might not be a free thinking individual.
aspirational messaging by a country unwilling or unable to live up to its best self.
ReplyDeleteIn two articles, you've mentioned the prohibition on kissing your grandchild. You aren't the first person who's brought this to my attention. My cousin encountered it last summer when she learned she couldn't kiss her great-grandchild, but she had no idea why kissing a baby had suddenly become taboo. So I'm asking what you've learned about the origins of this new taboo.
ReplyDeleteIt was explained to me like this. I could, for instance, have an open herpes sore in my mouth — I don't, to my knowledge, but that point seems moot — and give the tot my ailment, leading to her becoming blind. In light of that, I'm withholding all kisses until further notice.
DeleteTry welcoming your first grandchild into the upside down world of October, 2020. My ever so cautious daughter required a strict mask policy for many months. Of course we clicked our heels and complied.
DeleteNeil, you and I seem to be in the same corner of the world. Yesterday my husband and I visited the Smithsonian Museum of American History. I was roaming through a section on the Civil War where there were photos, artifacts, and printed information about soldiers, slave owners, women who aided the soldiers, officers who led untrained men to slaughter and slaves who fought for the Union, etc. There was also information about the difficulties of life during that time and the less than stellar performance of some officers and politicians. I was amazed that this blatant depiction of "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" still existed under the current regime,
ReplyDeleteI asked the volunteer in a quiet aside if their institution had been affected yet. He responded, "No, but we're waiting and are very nervous."
That was my takeaway looking at the enormous voting exhibit there (I was there the day before, too bad we didn't bump into one another). Give them time and they'll purge us of our past. Let's hope they don't blow up the monuments, like the Taliban.
DeleteEvery American should visit D.C. once, if they can.
ReplyDeleteIf you aren't shepherding school-age kids, maybe postpone D.C. until after the punishing heat of July and August. My first visit was at 15, in August of '62. The streetcar tracks and tunnels were still in place, but the streetcars had been retired since January. I was quite bummed.
DeleteBrutal heat and humidity, lack of sleep, no breakfast, and sneaking cigarettes on an empty stomach...a recipe for disaster. That combination finally led to tossing my cookies at Mount. Vernon, after the old man dragged us there.. George and Martha would not have been pleased.
I fully expect the big orange man to take over the entire list of Smithsonian institutiions and demand that anything DEI be eliminated. Entire buildings would have to close.
ReplyDeleteClark St.
ReplyDeleteBased on the founding fathers' subsequent behaviors, an argument can be made that every administration mutually pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honors to their friends and fellows (aka ruling class). Sacred honor. Societal? Or personal? Does the mafia have their own version of honor? They think so.
A society has to choose what sacred honor they're willing to follow. Boy, did MAGA make a horrible choice.
Glory or shame? According to F. Scott Fitzgerald, a first rate intelligence is needed to hold two opposed ideas at still function. I don't think its that difficult.
ReplyDeleteThe FDR Memorial is my favorite -- although I cringe at the families who line their kids up between the statues in the bread line, and encourage a wave and a smile for the family vacation photo! The meaning of this is lost on them all.
ReplyDeleteI mourn for the school classes that pose for smiling selfies at the Lincoln Memorial or worse, ignore it completely while chattering and snapping away. I find little opportunity to silently reflect on the seriousness of the words written there (and at the MLK, Jr memorial, and ...)
but perhaps the DOGE folk will overlook these words/meanings too?
I wish we could better convey the seriousness of those times in our history (or am I now just the "get off my lawn" generation?)