Musings: Our season of discontent
This season of American discontent began long ago, a reader writes. Credit: AP/Ayrton Breckenridge
As bewilderment and fear continue to mount regarding the direction our nation is taking, many place the blame on our president. But this season of American discontent, which is darkening our “shining city on a hill,” began long ago.
After the Allied victory in World War II, an era of hope, a “Pax Americana,” was born, arguably our finest hour. But some took umbrage with this, believing the cost was too high and the responsibility too great, creating an unnecessary burden for the United States. The seeds of discontent were planted and began to germinate.
In the decades that followed, many unskilled and semiskilled jobs were lured offshore by cheap labor, resulting in unemployment and trade deficits. America began, not without pain and adjustment, a transition to a service and technology economy. Prosperity spread, but so did the discontent as many believed this to be unfair to them. A lack of faith and trust in our government and institutions began to grow.
Over the years, many presidents adopted themes for their administrations. For Lyndon Johnson, it was “The Great Society.” He opened the door for the civil rights movement, the expansion of public assistance programs, women’s reproductive rights, diversity policies, and other progressive initiatives. But his stewardship of an unpopular war led to his decision to not seek reelection. The discontented were becoming angry and growing in number.
As a nation born of immigrants, we have, for the most part, been sympathetic to the plight of those arriving on our shores in search of a new life, but not the chaos we have experienced in recent years. Hundreds of thousands of unvetted people crossed our border, placing tremendous stress on budgets and resources. The discontent metastasized into anger and presented an opportunity for Donald Trump, a man whose only strength is recognizing and exploiting the weakness in others.
His promise to make America great again by building a wall was well received by the electorate. The commitment to massive tariffs to restore American dominance further assuaged reservations about putting him in the White House.
If we the people do not replace our rage with reason, the current stain on our history will continue to expand.
— Ed Weinert, Melville
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