Why did America stop caring?
We’re no longer the country I was raised as a kid to believe in
One of the first lessons of my childhood was a simple one:
The United States of America was the beacon for the free world. We were the good guys.
Patriotism wasn’t performative—it was sacred. Mine was a conservative Republican household, but that phrase defies translation to today’s shattered political landscape.
My dad certainly voted for Richard Nixon in 1960 – not so sure that wasn’t canceled by my mom – but even in a divided nation (as America has always been), the unshakable principle was that we stood for something special in the world. Now, that’s been shaken.
I’m old enough to have been weaned on the original, black-and-white Superman TV show, with the hero standing for “truth, justice and the American way.” Superman was an American and we were all about saving the entire world, pretty much every week.
The best we might hope for today about the Superman slogan might be to mumble, “two out of three ain’t bad.” And we probably can’t do that with any credibility.
One of the most compelling lessons I was taught was the glory of the Marshall Plan. Imagine, after World War II, America became the first country in world history to lift up its enemies and help rebuild their lives and their economies. Try selling that today.
But in another age, glorious recounting of America’s generosity brought tears to the eyes of an 11-year-old. Just as did the assassination of our president. But while the JFK tragedy is said to have ushered in the end of innocence for our country, it was nonetheless a trauma that at the time strengthened the belief that ours was what would later be described as “the indispensable nation.”
I’m writing today not because I’m old and nostalgic. I’m writing because I’m sad. Whatever your politics might be, it’s hard to deny that we’re now living in the least idealistic days of our lifetimes.
It’s beyond my pay grade to pinpoint what changed and why. Maybe it was the deepening fissures in America, punctuated by the realities of rapidly evolving demographic upheaval. Maybe it was international terrorism. Maybe the digital age.
The natural instinct for people of my political leanings would be to blame it all on the symptom known as Donald Trump. But that doesn’t drill to the core, either.
This ghastly man provides an undeniable symbol of what’s gone wrong with us. Yet, though his march to strongman autocracy is the largest crisis facing the nation today, it’s also helpful to recognize that the root of the problems long preceded Trump.
Somehow, some way, we just stopped caring collectively about what President Ronald Reagan called “the shining city on a hill.” I was no fan of Reagan’s presidency and would argue it didn’t begin to live up to his rhetoric, but at least give him credit for sharing the same ideal vision that I was taught as a kid.
So, next time a few hundred news stories stoking hatred of those within and without America land in your inbox – probably by tomorrow at the latest – please consider asking yourself a couple of simple questions that harken to my childhood:
Is the United States of America really a beacon for the world?
Are we the good guys?
If this reflection struck a chord, I’d be honored if you’d subscribe or share it. I’d like to make writing here my life’s work—but I can only do that with the paid support of readers like you.
👉 Subscribe here for more: https://rayhartmann.substack.com/subscribe
Ray - I was born in 1952 and have lived in the St. Louis area most of my life. Many of my early life experiences have been blown apart, but not just by the events since November 2024.
I’m a George Carlin fan not just because he made me laugh, but because he has been one of my most effective teachers. He made me think - differently. One of his most profound quotes, “It’s called the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” Is the best way to describe what my early life was like. I was put to sleep by the propaganda that is the American bullshit story. Education, religion, marketing, advertising, corporate strategy, radio, television, music, media, voting, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the 4th of July, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, football, baseball, hot dogs, and Chevrolet, it was all bullshit meant to perpetuate an ideal that wasn’t real.
The good that has come out of Trump and Musk is the reality of how truly weak the ideal was. Proof of how easily it could be hijacked by less than a majority. Proof that it was all fake, all a big lie.
As I’ve grown older, my mind’s eyesight has gotten clearer. I can see things more easily now for what they really are. This reality frightens many, but like Carlin, I’ve adopted the attitude that I don’t have a stake in the outcome anymore. I root against humanity and hope for the big asteroid. Does that mean I’ve quit and thrown in the towel? No, I still fight, I just don’t have any expectations for change. Maybe I fight just because it’s fun, challenging the status quo seems to frighten people.
Don’t feel sad about how things have changed since you grew up. You, like all of us are a victim of circumstance. It was always like it is today, they just hid it better from white people. Ask an Indian, a Hispanic, an Asian, a Black person, or any non-white person that hasn’t been corrupted by the American Okey Doke, how things were when they were growing up. It will be a lot different than you and I experienced no matter what their economic situation was at the time.
Thanks for your effort here and sorry you lost to that incumbent terrorist.
I'm a bit older than you, Ray. In 1964 I was 21 years old. I had been super sad about the death of John Kennedy but was even more shaken by the loss of Bobby Kennedy who is still my favorite politician. I believe a major shift in perceptions of the U.S. came when it was learned that Lyndon Johnson lied about the Gulf of Tonkin incident and used it as an excuse to run amok in Vietnam and drag many, many into harm's way. It was similar to Trump's grab for complete power without Congressional oversight. As the sister of three draft-age brothers, it really impacted me. I've been trying to remember the two-word phrase we used about Johnson's duplicity, there was even a board game named for it, but it is eluding me. Would you remember it?