Once upon a time a child was born in a place called the land of the free and the home of the brave. She was told that she was very, very lucky to be born in this land, the best country on earth. In school every morning, her entire class stood, placed their hands over their hearts, and solemnly recited a Pledge of Allegiance to her nation’s flag. After that the class sang a stirring song about the greatness of this land and its purple mountain’s majesty. The same songs were heard on Independence Day, and, as the music swelled to a crescendo, she felt both gratitude and pride at being a citizen of such a wonderful land.
In other countries, rulers did terrible things to their people, but few of their people would hear about it, as the newspapers printed only lies in support of the evil rulers. That would never happen in her country, Amerika, where the right of free speech had been enshrined for centuries as the first and the most important amendment in the founding documents of the republic. She learned that although her country had fought in many wars, it was always as either a victim of an unprovoked attack, or as a brave ally to those who were innocent victims.
The years passed and she lived her life with little regard to the work of her government. She voted every four years, wearing proudly her “I voted” sticker for the rest of the day.
To be sure, there were disturbing occurrences every now and then. A president was gunned down in broad daylight on a city street, then later his brother, an influential senator, was killed. A charismatic leader of the descendants of the slaves was shot and killed at the height of his popularity. But each time, thanks to quick police work, the lone nuts who committed these deeds were located within hours and punished, making the streets safe once again.
