Cat Rotator's Quarterly "What should a country remember? What should it forget? Some say we should remember only the times where the nation failed to live up to ideals, to mourn in sackcloth and ashes forever. Others say we should honor those who fought for the ideals of the country. And a lot are setting out or raising their flags, heading to small town parades, firing up the grill, checking the smoker, assembling the ingredients for ice cream sundaes, or flan, or other good stuff, and ignoring the entire philosophic argument. I think they’re the wise ones. They remember that the US is different, and celebrate that without worrying about who might care.
"It is easy, especially for those immersed in mass culture, to forget just how unusual the US is. It is the only country founded on a set of ideas that place the government behind the citizens. All powers are derived from the consent of the governed. The country’s founding idea is that the citizens agree to allow the government to have some of their powers, so long as the government behaves, for the greater good. The state, be it a monarchy, oligarchy, council of elders, or elected officials, does not grant rights to the citizens. The citizens loan powers to the government. That is totally bass-akwards to most of the world." . . .
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