Happy Independence Day!
This is the time of year when friends ask me if I’ll be celebrating July 4th, in a wry dig at the losing side of that war. As a transplanted Brit I have more to celebrate than most – I point out that had the War of Independence turned out differently, emigrating to the US might not have held the same appeal.
The whole world has reason to celebrate July 4th. It created that shining city on a hill, that refuge for the “huddled masses yearning to breathe free” as inscribed on the Statue of Liberty. This is the world’s most watched country. If our too-porous borders were thrown open tens of millions would come here. Even those who dislike America aspire to live more like us.
If you grew up in America, you don’t know what it’s like to be on the outside looking in. A country where people are proud of its values, that stands up for freedom, where opportunity beckons and where most cool things begin.
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In 2021 Roger Bennett, of Men in Blazers (a show about English football) and another transplanted Brit, wrote (Re)Born in the USA: An Englishman’s Love Letter to His Chosen Home. It was about growing up in Liverpool before emigrating to the US. Bennett yearned to leave dull, rainy northwest England for America — “with its sunny skies, beautiful women, and cool kids with flipped collars who ate at McDonald’s.”
Everything here looked better from across the pond, and Bennett describes what were for me familiar urgent teenage feelings of desire, the certainty that life was better in America, and I had to get here. Both of us were consumed with making it to the new world, and we both did. Roger Bennett brought his enthusiasm to Chicago and would probably agree that he has enjoyed more success as broadcaster, podcaster and filmmaker here than he would have in the old country.
Being an immigrant means never forgetting the huge thrill of arriving; of a dream fulfilled. Ronald Reagan was my first president. His sunny optimism epitomized my new country when I moved here, and I readily embraced his positivity. Life has its ups and downs, but, as Reagan wrote when announcing his Alzheimer’s diagnosis in 1994, “…for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead.”
Since arriving in May 1982, I have never doubted for a moment it was the right move.
In recent years the growing negativity of so many has astounded me. It was made most clear in a WSJ survey a few weeks ago in my responses to the Civics questions. They included “How proud are you of America’s history (answer: Very). Compared with the 1,200 respondents I am at the optimistic extreme, the 99th percentile.
We’re not short of problems that need solving. I can name a few myself, starting with our catastrophic immigration policies that allow in too many phony asylum seekers. But great countries become that way by aspiring to greatness, and that doesn’t happen without striving to be better. We can confront and beat the challenges we face.
Jobs are plentiful. We’re not at war and the pandemic with its shocking loss of liberty is a distant memory. Living standards are the highest in the world and the highest in history.
If you’re not happy in America, right now, where and when would you rather live?
Social media and the proliferation of news outlets have allowed us to choose the news sources that incorporate our biases. And nothing helps ratings as much as getting your viewers riled up.
I have commented to my partner Henry that the country seems as polarized as it’s ever been. Henry is from North Carolina and like most southerners has a keener sense of civil war history than we northerners. He points out that the 1860s were worse.
We’re self-segregating to live amongst people that think like us. Our clients are energy investors and much of my social life revolves around golf clubs. Unsurprisingly, I spend most of my time with Republicans and I like that. It’s comfortable. I think conservatives see more things going right than wrong. But I have good friends that are Democrats and I enjoy their company too. We don’t have to be defined by our politics,
Your friends and the people around you are the real America. Don’t be depressed by the extremism that both blue and red leaning news outlets push. Angering viewers is their business model.
Enjoy Independence Day with friends. Because Americans are overwhelmingly good, friendly people. Look around you. It’s why there’s always a bright dawn ahead.
We have three have funds that seek to profit from this environment: