To the Olympics…And Beyond
Shhh...don’t tell anyone… but I’m with Sarah. I kind of like America.
In a few days I, along with many other Americans, will start obsessing over the Tokyo Olympics. Overnight I’ll become a huge fan of diving and track cycling. I’ll stay glued to every gymnastics event and learn each team member’s life story, as well as their hopes and dreams. I’ll pretend to be an expert at swimming. I’ll marvel at the beach volleyball players (those abs!) and stare in awe at the track and field competitors. I will spend many hours doing this, stay up way past my bedtime, and not regret a single second. Why will I do this, you ask? It’s simple. Because I’m proud to be American and I love rooting for my home country, gosh darnit!
And yet...while I swell with pride every time our beloved national anthem plays for the whole world to hear, some of my fellow Americans will be doing the opposite. They’ll be littering social media with posts about how America isn’t worth being proud of these days. They’ll be reminding us - oh so gently - that we’re a country of racist bigots unworthy of admiration. They’ll say we’re an embarrassment; a stain on the global stage. They’ll hold up athletes who turn their backs on the flag as glorified icons. They’ll roll their eyes at any display of patriotism and inject politics into every narrative. They’ll be the MOST woke.
Think I’m being overly dramatic?
Look at what happened over July 4th. Earlier this month, we approached our nation’s birthday with a story about how track athlete Gwen Berry turned her back during the Star Spangled Banner as a sign of protest during the Olympic trials. So brave.
On Independence Day, Democrat Rep. Cori Bush tweeted about how the freedom we’re celebrating is freedom only for white people (I’m paraphrasing). The progressive Instagram account, “So You Want To Talk About…,” told its 3 million followers that “there is nothing to celebrate today.” It went on to list four things to do “instead of celebrating the 4th of July,” and used a cartoon drawing of a burning, upside-down American flag to drive home its point. National Public Radio (NPR) used the holiday to tweet about how awful the Declaration of Independence is. The New York Times published a piece painting the American flag as divisive, and was accompanied by a tweet that did more than provide a wink and nod to the stereotype that American flags and pick-up trucks equal deranged Trump supporter. Last but certainly not least, the Black Lives Matter Utah leader actually called the American flag a “symbol of hatred” and said the “person flying it is a racist.”
Progressives just can’t help themselves, I guess? Why celebrate America when you can bash it? Why embrace some good old fashioned patriotism on our nation’s birthday when you can use social media for displays of faux intellectualism? And spare me the “criticizing America’s flaws is patriotic” argument. Yes, I know. I’ll support your right to burn the flag and criticize our nation all day every day. But don’t think, for one second, that I’m impressed by it or agree with it.
The Bigger Picture
All this America-bashing, however, should be viewed in the context of a larger trend. Yes, I’m talking about the culture wars. Again. Ever notice how the Right gets dinged over and over again for igniting culture wars while the Left magically seems to escape any blame? Take it away, Kevin Drum:
It is not conservatives who have turned American politics into a culture war battle. It is liberals. And this shouldn't come as a surprise: Almost by definition, liberals are the ones pushing for change while conservatives are merely responding to whatever liberals do. More specifically, progressives have been bragging publicly about pushing the Democratic Party leftward since at least 2004—and they've succeeded.
…
So why is it conventional wisdom to point to conservatives as "culture war mongers"? As I've mentioned before, it's a straightforward consequence of behavioral economics. For most people, losing something is far more painful than the pleasure of gaining something of equivalent value. And since conservatives are "losing" the customs and hierarchies that they've long lived with, their reaction is far more intense than the liberal reaction toward winning the changes they desire. This produces more outrageous behavior from conservatives even though liberals are actually the ur-source of polarization.
The culture wars are alive and well, my friends. In case you forgot. But who’s launching the first missiles? And does it matter? I think it does, yes. I’ll even take Drum’s behavioral economics theory one step further. It’s not just that the left starts a lot of these culture war battles and escapes all blame because the right often overreacts (true). Culture warriors on the left get to deny that they’re even talking about culture at all. Instead, cancelling someone on Twitter or insisting on the term “birthing person” is about equality and fairness and serious policy proposals. And, in the words of Commentary’s Noah Rothman, anyone opposed is “hidebound, oppressive, and reactionary.”
But what is it that they’re after? Can someone enlighten me? Will they be satisfied if the 1619 Project is incorporated into every school curriculum in America? Will they happily pledge allegiance to the flag if Congress authorizes reparations? Do they simply want us all to shut up and admit to our white privilege while committing to being more anti-racist? Will they be happy if we all agree to stop using the word “mother”? What about if we cancel every last remaining conservative college professor?
The answer to all the questions above, of course, is no. They will never be satisfied. Being a progressive demands that you engage in never-ending goalpost moving. What’s good enough today won’t be good enough tomorrow. Since the beginning of time, progressives have resisted operating within a set of guiding principles. That’s why to them, the Constitution is a living, breathing document that can be ignored or twisted to fit the whims of the moment. Why stick to our nation’s founding document when you can pursue a super serious policy agenda like universal healthcare and free education? Why accept a Supreme Court decision on gay marriage as a win, when you can also try to force a small business owner to bake a wedding cake? If it seems like progressives are moving farther and farther to the left and their demands are becoming more and more extreme, it’s because they are. On the culture front, they’re just getting started.
2021 Check-In
Can you believe we’re halfway through the year 2021? It’s mid-July now, which means it’s basically Labor Day. Which means Halloween is right around the corner. And then it’s Thanksgiving and Christmas! Are you sufficiently freaked out yet? So let’s do a mid-year check-in. How are those New Year’s Resolutions going? Raise your hand if you skipped ‘em this year! I know I did. Instead, I did something a little different. I picked a word for 2021. Yes, a word; one that I wanted to remember, live by, and use to guide me through these 12 months. That word is “steward.”
For many of us, 2021 has been all about recovery. Recovery from a contentious political cycle. Recovery from a global pandemic. Recovery from lockdowns and restrictions. Recovery from anxiety and stress. But rather than just focusing on recovering from a traumatic year, I wanted my 2021 word to promote a sense of calm and forward-thinking progress. At the beginning of 2021, I promised myself I would be a good steward. A good steward of my finances, of my body, of my marriage, and of my mind. To me, that means spending less money on things I don’t need. It means finally getting serious about losing the baby weight and not making excuses about why I can’t work out. It means finding time to still be a wife while I learn how to be a mom. For a while, it meant going to therapy for postpartum depression and not being ashamed about it. To this stay, it still means knowing when and how to ask for help.
In all things, I want to be a good steward. It isn’t always easy (hello, late-night ice cream cravings!), but I know it’s worth it. How’s your 2021 going?
Amanda’s Media Diet
When The State Comes For Your Kids (City-Journal)
“Financially Hobbled For Life”: The Elite Master’s Degrees That Don’t Pay Off (WSJ)
Author of Mega-Viral Thread on MAGA Voters, Darryl Cooper, Explains His Thinking (Glenn Greenwald)
Recipes I’m Loving
Instead of sharing my favorite products with you this week, I figured I’d switch things up and share some SWEET recipes I’ve made this summer.
Recently made this chocolate ice cream and gave it a 12 out of 10. It was that good.
Did someone say strawberry rice krispie treats?
One Last Thing