Independence Day
The greatest country on the face of the earth; a shining city on the hill; the last great hope of mankind. These unseemly boasts have often been used by American politicians in describing the United States. They have been employed so often that the people who are running for office are expected to use them. While our country turns 240 years old today, there are many signs that this arrogant facade has begun to show widening cracks.
It is true that America and its educational institutes have been responsible for some of the world's most bold innovations and scientific discoveries, unparalleled in the annals of human achievement. We have landed on the moon and sent probes to the deepest parts of space; we have connected our planet with a miraculous electronic network that permits human beings to get access to information representing the totality of human knowledge; we have developed complex instruments for medical research and associated technologies designed to fight disease and prolong human life. These are some among many examples of America's "greatness."
Yet that is not the entire picture. The U.S. is one of only three countries in the world, along with Papa New Guinea and Oman, lacking guaranteed paid maternity leave for working moms, according to the United Nations. Most developed countries require employers to provide some amount of paid maternity or paternity leave, paid family and sick leave, and affordable early childhood education for their workers.The U.S. lags significantly behind other developed countries in all of these areas.
The United States has the largest prison population in the world and the second-highest per-capita incarceration rate. Statistics on gun violence are sobering. More than 280,000 Americans have been killed by guns over the last ten years. Yet, the leadership of the House of Representatives refuses to allow common sense gun legislation to be voted upon. The greatest country in the world?
It is true that America and its educational institutes have been responsible for some of the world's most bold innovations and scientific discoveries, unparalleled in the annals of human achievement. We have landed on the moon and sent probes to the deepest parts of space; we have connected our planet with a miraculous electronic network that permits human beings to get access to information representing the totality of human knowledge; we have developed complex instruments for medical research and associated technologies designed to fight disease and prolong human life. These are some among many examples of America's "greatness."
Yet that is not the entire picture. The U.S. is one of only three countries in the world, along with Papa New Guinea and Oman, lacking guaranteed paid maternity leave for working moms, according to the United Nations. Most developed countries require employers to provide some amount of paid maternity or paternity leave, paid family and sick leave, and affordable early childhood education for their workers.The U.S. lags significantly behind other developed countries in all of these areas.
The United States has the largest prison population in the world and the second-highest per-capita incarceration rate. Statistics on gun violence are sobering. More than 280,000 Americans have been killed by guns over the last ten years. Yet, the leadership of the House of Representatives refuses to allow common sense gun legislation to be voted upon. The greatest country in the world?
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