Rick Notkin: There is a path to redemption for the U.S.

To The Daily Sun,

I have a question: Why are you here?

Seriously, since we are repeatedly told that the U.S. is the worst country in the world, that we are, directly or indirectly, the cause of most atrocities in other countries, that white people are irredeemably oppressors, that people of color will always be oppressed, why are you here?

Obviously, this question is being posed to a relatively small number of readers. Most folks are here because we are the most free country in the history of the Earth. The capitalism that many citizens endorse has allowed more people to emerge from poverty than any other system in use.

Do we have flaws? Clearly. Is there a path to redemption? Obviously. A quiz: how many countries or cultures had slavery? (I’ll wait while you look that up.) What country was among the first to abolish it? (Hint: the initials are U, S, and A.)

How can you tell if something is racist (judging people by their race)? Substitute “Black” for “white” and then look at it again.

The Border Patrol reported they stopped more than 180,000 people this past May compared to 27,000 in May 2020. Were these people looking for more hardships? I think not.

Who knows whose flag protesters yearning for freedom in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Cuba were waving? (Hint: it’s red, white, and blue and it’s not France.)

Another question: What is the difference between many of last year’s Black Lives Matter and antifa riots and the hubbub at the Capitol on Jan. 6? Both allegedly had a small percentage of participants engaging in violence. One had significant property damage and injuries from which areas are still recovering. The other was resolved in a couple of hours. One had armed participants who caused injuries, chased people in vehicles and beat them, blocked people in vehicles and beat them, and shot and killed people. (Who is saying David Dorn’s name?) The other had a small group of unarmed people who caused some property damage.

Oh, why do we almost instantly know the name of any police officer who is accused of inappropriate actions anywhere but in Washington on Jan. 6? Not only do we not know the name of the officer that shot and killed unarmed Ashli Babbitt, but I read that said officer has been cleared of wrong doing. Where are those anti-police protests and the armchair quarterbacking of why less-than-lethal methods weren’t used? Don’t hold your breath.

I wish that certain groups would stop trying so hard to make the lamest “insurrection” in U.S. history a big thing. It just wasn’t. I also wish that half the effort being expended in tracking down everyone who was within 10 miles of the Capitol was being directed at the people who tried to burn the Federal courthouse in Portland while there were people inside. (In most states, arson of an occupied building allows deadly force to be used to stop it. The occupants of the courthouse were apparently not allowed to use deadly force.)

Rick Notkin

Gilford