The Glorious Fourth every year opens up the opportunity to ponder the Legacy in which each and every American partakes.
At the very beginning of The American Soul, Jacob Needleman tells the story of
"You don't know what you have here," said the old man to the students who had gathered to meet him in the summer of 1974, who spoke with contempt of the Vietnam War, the destruction of the environment by rapacious corporations, and the media's complicity in spreading the toxic American consumerism worldwide.
"You simply don't know what you have," repeated the self-proclaimed last American who was in fact British.
"The American Soul : Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Founders" (Jacob Needleman)
Focusing on the wrongs perpetrated in the name of the United States, some see little of value. Others take it for granted. Only those who truly see its value, its ability for self correction and the last, best hope can live lives worthy of the legacy they have received.
Unless we fully accept the glorious gift we have received from the farmers who died a painful death for the idea of a United States, from the founding fathers, from the families who suffered as fathers, brothers and sons fell in the Civil War to preserve the Union and end slavery, from the countless, innumerable others before us who gave us an increased Legacy, we can not preserve and increase the gift itself to those that follow.
UPDATE.
Via Hang Right on Tony Blair's speech to Congress in 2003 on what it is to be an American.
We are fighting for the inalienable right of humankind–black or white, Christian or not, left, right or a million different–to be free, free to raise a family in love and hope, free to earn a living and be rewarded by your efforts, free not to bend your knee to any man in fear, free to be you so long as being you does not impair the freedom of others.
That’s what we’re fighting for. And it’s a battle worth fighting.
And I know it’s hard on America, and in some small corner of this vast country, out in Nevada or Idaho or these places I’ve never been to, but always wanted to go…
I know out there there’s a guy getting on with his life, perfectly happily, minding his own business, saying to you, the political leaders of this country, “Why me? And why us? And why America?”
And the only answer is, “Because destiny put you in this place in history, in this moment in time, and the task is yours to do.”