Except that it is the adherence to the rule of law which makes the first world the first world. And from where I am standing it seems like some people have decided that the the rule of law is a dispensable commodity and with a little money and lots of handshaking you should be able to circumvent it. I left Communist Hungary with my parents in 82 for the free west, where milk and honey flowed and freedom was real!
I loved it so much that for all my sins got an MA in American Studies! When I studied in the 90s we learnt that
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The founding fathers cared so much about democracy that they made sure Capitol Hill is accessible to all Citizens–especially the Library of Congress, where in the old days you could just walk in!
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The citizens of New York City took civic pride in creating Central Park and making sure that it can never ever be encroached upon by development and is enjoyed by all in perpetuity!
Well those principles are now long gone. The last time I was in DC getting near Capitol Hill could have made climbing over the Berlin Wall look easy and Central Park is now up for grabs–and no, I wouldn’t want to take a stroll in the shade of an 85 storey building–substantially different from walking in the shade of a tree, where the leaves are dancing to the breeze.
So dear Americans, could you do us a favour for those of us who have gone to great length to join you in the “free world”, could you at least go back to pretending that democracy and civic pride are still values you subscribe to?
