Different Perspectives, Same Result
Rick Segal and I have different, if not complementary perspectives on the United States. He is a US citizen living in Canada; I am a Canadian living in the US. I have met Rick in person, and he is an intelligent and insightful person to speak with.
Last night, he posted his reaction to the US Senate’s lack of unanimous support for the apology for lynching. [here]
This story hits home for me as well. I have chosen to live in this country. I know that as a guest, I should be quiet and not rock the boat. But when a situation such as this arises, along with the increasing levels of spitfire rhetoric and poisonous debate, I have to step back and ask: why?
For the most part, my life in the US has been one of comfort and ease. However, when I moved to the US in 1999, I was surprised at just how different two countries could be who looked so much alike.
Last year’s presidential campaign, the second one I have been through while here, further highlighted that the voices of moderation and rational thought are lost in the need to polarize and inflame.
But, as Rick says, at 32,000 feet, all of that is gone. There aren’t countries; or red states and blue states. Just the ever morphing tapestry of the world we live on. The hand of man can be seen from this height. Nature is still in control, shaping how man shapes the land.
We will come and go. We all die. But our legacy will be remembered, and, increasingly, recorded for all posterity.
Be true to yourself. Remember, the way history judges you is beyond your control.
David Janes is maintaining a list of the non-sponsoring Senators.
