G

Greatness

"Make America great again" was a powerful and persuasive motto.  It landed Trump and his cronies and family in the White House.

We've grown up on advertising that shows the power of the word, great.  We buy everything from soap to shoes if the claim (however unfounded) includes superlatives like "great" and "best."  But what is greatness?

The most unpopular president in the history of America seems to get his "facts" (or should I say "alternative facts"?) from Fox News which is about as "fair and balanced" as Trump himself.  "The media is the enemy of the people" echoes Nixon, and we all know how that story played out.

Under this administration, the arts are at risk, NPR is at risk, health care is at risk, women's rights are at risk, the environment is at risk, but the military complex and big money for the Top Tiny percent are thriving.  Driven by fear, America is setting out to build our fighting power by billions of dollars (at the expense of everything else) to scare off the "bad guys" who are "out to get us." This mentality is making us look like anything but great to the rest of the world.

If I were to travel abroad right now, I'd want to apologize to everyone I meet for being an American under the banner of "America First"--an arrogant nationalism that is insulting to our allies and friends all over the world.

No country can be "great" that discounts education and health care for its own people and looks upon immigrants and other nationalities and religions with scorn and distrust.  If wealth is measured only in monetary riches, there can be no greatness, only an increasingly lopsided view of what matters.  What about the wealth of brilliant minds?  What about the wealth of a superior education and health care system for all?  What about the wealth of truth-telling and supporting claims with facts?

Great men and women don't go around flouting their greatness.  Greatness is evident in wisdom, compassion and generosity--not constantly advertising oneself (or one's nation) as great, terrific, the biggest, the best.