If we do not know our past, how can we guide ourselves in our future? Or are we destined to be only the equivalent, as Obama said, Greek exceptionalism? Remember, “when everyone is special, then nobody is special” (from the movie “The Incredibles”).
“For the first century of American history, both Europeans and Americans saw the United States as exceptional: there was no nation like it anywhere else in the world. But do the characteristics that made America exceptional still apply? In the AEI book “American Exceptionalism: An Experiment in History,” Charles Murray describes what set the United States apart from Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries and whether America can still be called exceptional today.”
If we have lost those qualities, then why? When did we turn from what made America great and why? Did another set of values sneak in and replaced those that worked? If so, why did we let it – how did we let it? More importantly, what has to change to recoup those values to go forward?
What must happen in order to return to those values – and does anyone even care about them anymore? Or has America been hollowed out too much?
The Book is oriented around:
- American exceptionalism is a concept that was shared by observers throughout the Western world, not just Americans.
- American exceptionalism does not imply American excellence or superiority
- American exceptionalism is a fact of America’s past
- American exceptionalism refers to qualities that were first observed in the opening century of our history
Once we get our phone line(s) in for GrokTALK!, we need to talk with Charles Murray, author of “American Exceptionalism: an experiment in history”
(H/T: Hot Air)
