Observations

How is America doing? More to the point, “How are Americans doing?”

Here is what I have seen recently:

Since the first of July,  I have spent time here in Seattle; in Brookhaven, Georgia, the Atlanta suburb where my youngest son Jamie lives with his wife and my 4 young grandchildren; and in my east-coast home in Gettysburg, which, aside from its historic past, is really just a small rural town.

In all three of these very different places I observed that adults were going to work, kids were happily playing in parks, businesses were open, and the people I interacted with were both friendly and helpful.  

I saw this even at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, which by my standards is way too big.  Despite the crowded and often claustrophobic atmosphere, people were pretty nice and courteous to each other. 

While standing in a really long TSA line, something happened to one of the people in line and he ended up passed out on the floor.  Complete strangers came to his aid and stayed with him until the EMT arrived.  

Here in Seattle I attended a sold-out concert at T-Mobile Park (Home of the Mariners and previously known as SAFECO Field) with about 40,000 of my closest friends.  Again, although the crowd was way too large for my liking, people were courteous, patient, and helpful.  

Most people are good.

In all three locations I observed many trains and trucks moving cargo. New housing was being constructed; mostly large apartment buildings in Atlanta and Seattle (where in both cities one can see construction cranes everywhere) and single family homes near Gettysburg. Businesses seemed busy with people coming and going in all three locations and business parking areas had lots of cars in them. 

People were on the move, walking, commuting in cars and riding buses or light rail. 

On weekends I saw cars parked at houses of worship. Even here in what some might call godless Seattle, many people actually do go to church.   

Yes, there are serious problems that must be addressed: Inflation, employment, alcohol and drug abuse, crime, gun violence, gun rights, foreign wars, nuclear proliferation, the rise of authoritarianism and nationalism, internet use and security, immigration policy, wealth inequality, homelessness,  global warming, trade policy, women’s rights, abortion, tax policy,  diversity, human trafficking, political correctness, individual freedoms, health care, national defense and the role of government. 

Some of these issues need to be addressed internationally or at the federal level, others are better left to lower government levels or to private organizations or to individuals.

Certainly we don’t all agree on the solutions. Nor should we.

A democracy (or “republic,” if you prefer that term) ruled by the people assumes competing ideas and then allows for, even promotes, the expression of those competing ideas. 

No one person, or party for that matter, has All of the answers.  

To help form my positions, I try to read and watch news daily and include as many different sources as possible. Most sources are biased one way or the other. If you rely on sources of news that only confirm with what you already know or believe,  you are not really informed. And please, don’t get me started on opinions based on, ”I saw it on the Internet.”

It is easy to get sucked into the negative news cycles.  The old adage, “If it bleeds, it leads,” is now more true than ever.  People getting along with one another and going to work or school each day does not get coverage, but that is mostly what is happening.

We do have to rely on the mass media to stay informed. I have never been to Ukraine, Israel or Gaza much less China, Russia or North Korea. I have been to Vietnam and have some vivid memories about both the country and the war, but that was over half a century ago.   I have not been to the U.S. southern border nor to some states in many years. I have not even been to Canada recently, and it is only about 100 miles north of my Seattle residence. My point is that we do need to rely on news media for information that we cannot see or hear ourselves.

We do, however, need to take this info with a healthy grain of salt.

Chris Wallace said in a recent interview that Mike Wallace was partially to blame for the decline in the objectiveness of TV news.  This seemed like a strange thing to say about his late father, who Chris both loved and admired.

Chris went to explain that his father was one of the people responsible for the success of 60 Minutes.  60 Minutes was the first TV news show to actually make  a significant profit.   Prior to that time, the networks all viewed the news as a public service.  Walter Cronkite, Edward R. Murrow, Chet Huntley and David Brinkley were allowed to just “report” the news.  Once the networks saw that they could make money on the news, everything changed. Now, news organizations must make a profit and this is much easier to do that when you tell an audience what they want to hear.

Very few people I know read a newspaper anymore,  there are a few goòd newspapers left, but readership is way down from what I have seen.  In my Seattle condo on Sunday there are only five copies of the newspaper placed in the lobby.  One copy is ours, the other four are all people over 60.   I don’t know anyone in their 20s, 30s, 40s, or 50s who regularly reads a newspaper.  In Gettysburg it is hard to find newspapers, only a few stores have them and the size of the piles of paper are very small.  Despite the city having an important daily paper (The Journal Constitution), I have never seen a newspaper box (vending machine) in Atlanta.

I listen to the radio whenever I am in the car. Only NPR has news regularly.  Some radio stations have morning DJs who talk about “unusual” stories,  but these stories, although some may be interesting, are not what I consider “real” news. Most radio stations just play music all of the time, except when they are running ads. 

I have more trust in my own senses and the first-hand observations of people I know personally than I do in mass media news.

I am not a Pollyanna: I do know of family members and personal friends with drug/alcohol problems. I have lost items to thieves. I have seen homeless people living under tarps, mentally ill people urinating in public and prostitutes parading around streets half nude in broad daylight.  I have  paid over $4.50 for a gallon of gas. 

I know people personally who are making minimum wage and cannot afford to live near where they work. Every family I know has at least one family member who is dealing with a serious issue like cancer, mental illness, incarceration, learning issues or dementia. 

Clearly all is not “coming up roses” for everyone here in America.

There are also positive observations as well beyond the previously mentioned statement, “Most people are good.” 

Here are just a few personal observations:  Of the hundreds of people who have not retired that I know personally, only one does not have a job; I have seen “Help Wanted” signs on places of business in all three locations I have spent time in in the past two months; almost everyone I know who can drive has a car or access to one; I can’t think of anyone who does not have access to the internet, a cell phone, TV or radio; I don’t know anyone personally who has lost a job to an Illegal alien; I don’t know anyone personally who has lost a son or daughter to either gun violence or to an assault by a criminal immigrant; I can’t think of any family I have known personally with a service member who has lost their life in a combat zone in at least the past ten years. 

In just two months, have seen literally thousands of people in three very different parts of the country. The vast majority of these Americans are good and friendly people, or who are, at the very least, courteous to others.

Some people I know have said online that America is in decline or worse, they talk about “American carnage.” And yet, who among us is really going to leave the US?  Where would one go?  What country is better? If there is a better place, why are you still here?

America is far from perfect.

However, from what I have observed personally, I’d say Americans, not all, but most, are faring pretty well.  

Jim