Finally Proud to Be an American?

One of the interesting things about social networking is how quickly it allows you to sample the zeitgeist.  I knew that my friends on Facebook, many of them Obama supporters, would be happy with the news today -- some of them were literally dancing in the streets last night, after all -- but I'm troubled by a few revelations.

Facebook has the nifty "status update" feature by which users tell all their friends exactly what they're doing, how they're feeling, or their deepest thought at that particular moment in under 80 characters.  It gives a quick glimpse into the lives and thoughts of the people you "know."  Today the status updates were spectacular.  I might post a few later, but for now I just want to focus on the general theme from many of my more liberal/formerly politically apathetic friends.

Sarah Fluffenheimer is finally proud to be an American

It came in a few variations, such as adding, "Feels good for a change!" but the sentiments were fairly uniform.

I was shocked.  I really have no way to relate to any such sentiment and am trying really hard to understand it.  I have always been proud of my country.  I haven't always been proud of her leaders.

I was proud when I first prayed for my country at 8 years old and witnessed the defeat of incumbent president George H.W. Bush by Bill Clinton.  I remember Clinton's DNC speech that year and being very alarmed at that young age by his stance on abortion.  I remember feeling like the world as I knew it was over (and, since I was born under Reagan, in many ways, it was).  But I was still proud to be an American.

I remember sending my first campaign contribution to Dole/Kemp in 1996, $25 from a paper carrier.  I knew no one thought Dole had a chance, but I wanted to help.  I fasted that day for the first time.  When the results came in, I wore black for a week in mourning.  Then I pressed on.  I was still proud to be an American.

I remember the hotly contested 2000 election and the partisan bickering on both sides.  I remember Al Gore's angry "concession" speech after the verdict was in.  I sighed and prayed for grace and peace.  I was still proud to be an American.

I remember campaigning in 2004, meeting all sorts of good-natured and ill-tempered South Carolinians, taking part in a study program with energized and engaged Republicans and Democrats, watching Fahrenheit 911 and Journeys With George and Bush's Brain together, along with the debates.  I remember feeling my friends' genuine sorrow and fear with Kerry's loss even as I experienced my own thanksgiving and relief.  I was still proud to be an American.

Last night, I watched a war hero give the most gracious concession speech I have ever heard and was overwhelmed by his humility and sense of honor as he rebuked any comments in the crowd disrespectful of the President-Elect.  I watched with concern as crowds coalesced in giant parades, planned and unplanned, with the sort of fervor and massiveness that reminded me of Middle Eastern mobs venerating their leaders and shouting over their victory in a coup.  I am still proud to be an American.

I can't shake this nagging question -- why are my friends proud of America or proud to be Americans only when their candidate is elected?  The answer points to demagoguery and ultimately, the end of democracy in America.

I am proud of America because I know -- I have been taught from a young age -- that America is not defined by who currently is in a position of power.  America is a dream.  America is a miracle.  The Founders understood the importance of what they wrote in the Declaration of Independence, government only by "the consent of the governed," because "all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, and that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."  America is a gift from God.  In the words of James Madison, my "fellow Americans must perceive in the Constitution a finger of that almighty hand which has been so frequently extended to our relief in the critical stages of the revolution."

I would add that the almighty hand is evident when one considers the many times our nation was pulled back from the precipice of destruction -- slavery, the Civil War, World War II.  I am not proud of America because I can take credit for it, or because any man can take credit for it.  I am proud -- perhaps a better term is grateful -- because America is a gift that must be cherished, regardless of who is in power.  We are not a perfect nation, but we are a special nation.  I don't think my friends, who are only celebrating their nation today, understand that.

I think that they understand America to be the Oracle who speaks on the television screens and smiles for the cameras.  For the past 8 years, they've hated that America -- uncouth, inelegant, unattractive.  Today they have a different America -- sleek, sexy, refined.  It is not their choice that makes me tremble (though I do shudder a bit); it's their trust and veneration in a man and not a Nation.