RUMINATIONS ON OUR CURRENT BODY POLITIC

By: Dr. Victor M. Sternberg

SEPTEMBER 11, 2022

It is with great irony that I complete this on 9/11. As I listened to the memorial speeches I heard one young man whose father left him when he was 7 years old as the towers came down cry out "21 years ago we were united as a nation. We cared about each other. We were one America. What has happened?"

I was going to include many of my thoughts about the corporatization of healthcare, both medical and dental, in the United States but I will reserve this for a later blog. I feel the need to express my concerns about the issues facing our nation. I am interested in the opinions of the readers. That being said, let us begin.

As I write this, the carnage that began 7 months ago in the Ukraine continues. The prognosticators from both sides and from the world at large have been proven incorrect. The current and future fallout on the world stage remain serious if not catastrophic for both the Ukrainians, Russians and possibly the entire world.

With that as a backdrop, the divide in our nation which has always existed has gone from a political disagreement to a political civil war. The battlegrounds are in the halls of Congress, the Supreme Court, the White House, and in 50 state houses across our nation. The ongoing skirmishes are exposed every night on cable networks and on the internet. What was supposed to be a source of information, the media, has become a cesspool of disinformation, selective news and character assassinations. Journalism was intended to inform and provide a platform for free speech but instead has become a reality TV show where ratings are the goal, and keeping the audience tuned in, providing them with the opinions that reinforce their viewpoints. If you could peek behind the curtain of cable news networks you would find that advertising dollars, driven by ratings, are the true source of opinions promulgated by the anchors. When the news media became a source of income rather than a lost leader for the networks, objectivity and facts became casualties. Not only is this a misuse of journalistic freedom but has polluted our politics and has negatively impacted science and medicine as well. The Socratic method of asking questions and then testing the hypothesis has become a causality in our current political and media climate.

Disregarding the lessons of history has brought us to this point. We have been warned by our past iconic leaders.

Let us begin with our most revered president, Abraham Lincoln, who observed the carnage of Gettysburg stated prophetically, "A house divided against itself cannot stand".

On the other side of the divide, sits Jefferson Davis, the president of the now defeated confederacy who, as the war ended, pronounced the following "The principle for which we contend ( Civil War) is bound to reassert itself, though it may be at another time and in another form." How prophetic. That time is now and the form is what we observe on a daily basis on the streets of America and the Internet and on the networks and between families.

One final quote, more prescient now than ever, is from George Washington. Our great general and first president left office voluntarily, something unheard of at that time, and provided America with great wisdom when he said, “However [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion."
How we have ignored those words and the price we are paying for that today. Washington must be turning over in his grave to see what has become of our great nation. Lest you forget our founding fathers knew if they lost the war for independence they would pay not with the loss of their senate seat or a congressional position, but rather with their lives. Profiles in Cowardice would be appropriate as a second addition to John Kennedy's book Profiles in Courage.

ISSUES THAT DIVIDE US

There are many issues that divide us politically, economically and racially. Let me enumerate some of them.

The life of the unborn as it stands opposed to a woman's right to choose.

The outcome of our last presidential election either stolen due to fraud, or an outcome that was justified by the count of each state and then certified by the courts.

Systemic racism and white privilege permeating all aspects of our society or a nation that's made great progress and provides more opportunity than ever.

Our cancel culture where our founding fathers are judged by the standards of today or are valued for establishing our nation and our freedoms.

Our cancel culture where protecting the sensibilities of all as opposed by a freedom of speech and a forum for all viewpoints.

The issue of gender, homosexuality and gay marriage as the rights of individuals to determine their own lifestyle as opposed to values and beliefs that have existed for a millennium.

The issue of unfettered support of the second amendment vs. the concern of many for the daily carnage in our streets and our schools.

The issue of immigration, either the lifeblood of our nation or the beginning of the dilution of our essence.

Affordable healthcare vs. socialized medicine.

Crime in our streets and homelessness, the result of systemic racism and capitalism or rather a breakdown of our culture and permissiveness run wild.

Floods, heat and fires the manifestation of manmade global warming or a natural occurrence used by the left to undermine capitalism and fossil fuels.

Tuition forgiveness to foster economic well being of the indebted or a drain on the federal budget.

These are just a few of the issues that divide us and at this point seem irreconcilable. Along those lines I would recommend a few good books that can explore in depth our history, and our struggles.

John Meacham, a well respected historian, has written the book called The Soul of America, a must read. Amy Chua examines our differences in a book called Political Tribalism. And finally, a well documented examination of the origin of our disagreements about science. The book is called The Merchants of Doubt, extremely eye opening.

I know that my blog is loaded with issues that will be controversial and will elicit strong responses on both sides. I am not here to express my opinions but just to point out clearly the issues we face. In my humble opinion the greatest threat to America is our divisions and our inability to speak to each other instead of at each other.

As always I appreciate your feedback.

Yours truly,

Victor M. Sternberg, D.M.D.

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Dental Office of:
Victor M. Sternberg, D.M.D., PC

By Westchester Center for Periodontal & Implant Excellence

February 9, 2023