Islands of Hypocrisy

Before moving to Florida, Diane and I spent 25 years in a wonderful old home in Harwich Port on Cape Cod. A large 11-room home — what we liked to call “11 one-room houses hammered together over almost 200 years” — it was perfect for us and our four children. In truth, though, it evolved into a 25-year fixer-upper, probably why I got such a good deal when I bought it. But despite its shortcomings, it fulfilled all three of the real estate industry’s key priorities: location, location, and location. We were blessed to live close to the water so our children could take a two-minute walk to a beautiful, sandy beach on Nantucket Sound. Our quaint village’s downtown was also a short walk from our home, and the local library was just around the corner. Although it was a nice place to live, we could not afford to stay there in retirement, and so we made our way to Florida.

Across the water, almost due south of our former home, is Nantucket Island, made famous by Herman Melville’s brilliant 1851 novel, Moby Dick. Today, however, Nantucket is perhaps better known as the home of our younger son, Brendan, an electrician who helps the elites keep their lights on and power their Internet connections with their brokers. Nantucket is also the home — okay, one of the homes — of many so-called celebrities. For example, John Kerry, our nation’s climate czar, has a rather large home on Nantucket which he visits seasonally in his private jet. I can’t say for sure, but considering how much time he spends jetting around the world to ensure the peasants freeze in the winter and suffer heatstroke in the summer, I assume he must own the world’s only electric airplane. After all, if he owned a real jet that consumed thousands of gallons of jet fuel and polluted our upper atmosphere…well, that would be sheer hypocrisy. But as it turns out, Kerry is no stranger to hypocrisy, a trait he demonstrated  years before when he “served” on swift boats in Vietnam, shopped for medals, and then publicly denigrated has fellow veterans. If you want the truth about Kerry’s Vietnam service, read John O’Neill’s book, Unfit for Command. O’Neill, a true hero and my Naval Academy classmate, lifts the veil behind which Kerry tried to hide that truth. Today, though, Czar Kerry is a beloved Nantucket resident, a kind of town character who loves to ask the tourists such questions as, “Do you know who I am?” as he exercises head-of-the-line privileges at the local coffee shop. Always generates lots of laughs.

But enough about Nantucket. There’s another island across Nantucket Sound, this one southwest of our former home, and it’s called Martha’s Vineyard, or simply “The Vineyard” by those in the know. It too is the summer home of many of our nation’s wealthiest elites, and in this it surely eclipses Nantucket. If you’ve never visited the island, and think it might be nice to vacation there next summer, I suggest you first download the Zillow app, search for Martha’s Vineyard, and check out the home values in Edgartown or Chilmark. Then take a moment to check the summer rates for hotels and B&Bs. You’ll quickly discover that Martha’s Vineyard really isn’t for folks like you and me. The homes are both amazing and amazingly expensive, with very few valued under $1 million and many worth far more. The island is also home to those hard-working folks who must keep all those expensive homes running and beautiful. Other men and women provide the societal infrastructure that allows the wealthy to enjoy their summers. Because it’s not easy to find affordable housing, many workers commute on the ferry from mainland Cape Cod or live with others in temporary quarters provided by employers. Yes, indeed, Martha’s Vineyard is really for the wealthy elites.

Although it pretends to be an earthly paradise for the select, Martha’s Vineyard lacks one thing: undocumented migrants, those we once called illegal aliens. This is true of most wealthy communities, regardless of location. Of course, island businesses import plenty of foreign nationals every summer to staff hotels, restaurants, and landscaping firms, but they’re all sent home on Labor Day. Good heavens! If they stay any longer, they might just decide to settle in permanently. 

The difference between places like Martha’s Vineyard and the communities spread out along our southern border is striking. In the latter you will encounter thousands of migrants. Indeed, thousands cross the border every day and inundate these border communities which are far from wealthy. Many, probably most, citizens of these border cities and towns have Latin American roots and are not pleased with the local consequences of this border crisis. Interestingly, the Democrats now wonder why so many of these folks are deserting their party. 

Although the immigration policies of the federal government are the direct cause of our unsecured, open border, that same government has done little to solve its self-generated problems. Deadly drugs like fentanyl, that originate in Communist China and are processed by Mexican drug cartels, pour across the border daily and kill thousands of young Americans. The cartels also engage in widespread and highly profitable human trafficking resulting in the unspeakable degradation of so many woman and children. Closing the border would certainly help, but the Biden administration wants an open border, since it assumes these illegal immigrants will give thanks by voting for Democrats in future elections. Since many migrants come here to escape the despotic socialist governments of their native countries, I suspect they will be far more likely to vote for candidates who represent freedom rather than tyranny. The very fact that they’ve risked everything, even their lives, to get here shows they’re not stupid. And only stupid people vote against their own best interests.

Let me share a recent experience. I bought a new clothes dryer the other day and the two installers were immigrants from Venezuela. These two bright, hard-working young men told me they came here to escape the socialism that has all but destroyed their native land.  Both arrived only a couple of years ago. Both are husbands and new fathers and hope their children will grow up in freedom. I heard the same last week from a young repairman who came here from Cuba only last year. How they will vote is no mystery.

But the elites don’t understand this. To display their virtue, wealthy liberals, safely tucked away in their gated compounds and island retreats, like to describe their communities as sanctuaries open to all migrants, so long as none actually show up on their doorstep. (The Martha’s Vineyard welcome sign below is a popular yard sign on the island.)

This NIMBY attitude was clearly manifested this week when Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis flew 50 Venezuelan migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. Unlike President Biden, who has flown tens of thousands of migrants to destinations all over the country and has consistently done so under the cover of darkness, DeSantis and the other Republican border state governors hide nothing and fly or bus migrants openly. The reaction from liberals? DeSantis must be a Nazi and Biden is obviously a saint. Oh, yes, the city of El Paso, Texas, run by Democrat politicians, is also busing migrants to New York, but about this we hear nothing but silence from the northern Democrats. Go figure! 

Remarkably, Martha’s Vineyard’s civic leaders stated they simply don’t have the resources to care for these 50 migrants. This from one of the wealthiest communities in the country, an island with thousands of empty hotel rooms now that the tourist season is over. So, what did they do? The next day the governor of Massachusetts ordered the National Guard to remove these 50 migrants and transport them to a military base on Cape Cod. Problem solved! The pesky brown folks from Venezuela are now off the island and the elites can relax knowing their beloved Vineyard will not be contaminated by actual migrants. They seemingly prefer the virtual migrants who reside on their yard signs. Racism and hypocrisy remain alive and well. 

Just to emphasize this, NBC's media outlet posted the following tweet about the Florida governor's actions:

"Florida Gov. DeSantis sending asylum-seekers to Martha's Vineyard is like 'me taking my trash out and just driving to different areas where I live and just throwing my trash there," a founding member of a foundation that helps refugees says."

Oh, yes, those trashy migrants certainly don't belong on Martha's Vineyard. As you might expect, the backlash was significant, and NBC deleted the tweet. 

Blessed to be an American

I am always saddened when I hear Americans trash their homeland as if it were the worst country in the world. There seems to be a lot of this going around these days. And, perhaps most surprisingly, much of it comes from those who have most benefitted from that which makes the United States so different from all other nations.

Kaepernick et al. Kneeling

Hollywood celebrities, sports figures, academics, media pundits, lifelong self-serving politicians, ingrained bureaucrats, and assorted billionaires express truly remarkable hatred for the nation that made their worldly success possible. It's remarkable because, for so many, their parents and grandparents came to this country impoverished, seeking the better life which their descendants now enjoy.

Hollywood Intelligentsia

These elites, who mistakenly assume that worldly wealth and power are the product of wisdom, not only hate the nation and the founding principles that brought it into being, but also its most hard-working, productive people. Most disturbingly, the elites hate those who would sacrifice their lives to ensure the freedom of those who despise them. 

They attack our Constitution, a document specifically designed to keep us free and protect us from the tyranny of  elites of every stripe. Far more than the men who wrote and ratified it, the Constitution is responsible for our nation's greatness and continued existence.

But, of course, they must also attack our nation's founding fathers for their sins, forgetting that all men are sinners who still manage to accomplish good, and occasionally great, things. In their ignorance and their pride they consider themselves far superior not only to their fellow citizens, but also to the giants who went before them.

Is our nation perfect? Of course not. Perfection is unattainable through human means. But its perfections far outnumber its defects. And having traveled throughout much of the world, I cannot imagine living anywhere else. 

Ben Stein

Yes, indeed, I am saddened by these shameless attacks; but every so often I encounter something that offers at least a glimmer of hope.

Ben Stein, whom many would probably number among the elites since he is an economist, speech writer, media pundit, actor, etc. And yet he seems to be a man with a reasonably accurate sense of self-worth, one who accepts that success is largely the result of gifts from both God and man.

Occasionally, therefore, he can be counted on to write some wonderful things. In a recent American Spectator piece -- from Ben Stein's Diary -- he wrote the following:

"I spend a lot of time thanking God for letting me live in America, the greatest refuge that man ever created. I pray endlessly for the families and the souls of those who died in agony fighting the Nazis and the Japanese and the Communists to keep us free. I have air conditioning. Hot water. Indoor plumbing. Super abundance of food. Warm blankets. And freedom to do as I wish all day long. Yes, and I owe every bit of it to men and women who never even knew me, but who fought and lost lives and limbs so that I, a total unknown to them, could live in peace and prosperity. What thanks is possibly even remotely adequate?"

A comment worth sharing from a man, who like me, is 73 years old and has also reaped the harvest of the far greater lives that came before us. Thank God that, among our youth, we can still count many who believe their country is worth serving and saving. But too many today (like pajama boy below) think otherwise.  

Will these United States survive what may well be its greatest challenges? As one who served his country for many years, I suppose I'm hopeful, but, like the psalmist, I've also learned to

Put no trust in princes, in children of Adam powerless to save [Ps 146:3].

...and so I place my trust in God alone, thanking Him for what I am and have, but asking only that His will be done. 

Multicultural Disaster

If you've got the stomach to read any of my politically oriented posts, you'll know that when it comes to politics and the things of the world, I'm a bit of a pessimist...perhaps more than a bit. I've actually come to believe that, as a nation, we have probably reached the point of no-return. By this I mean that the United States of America will never again be the beacon of freedom it once was. The statist elites are so deeply imbedded in all levels of our societal infrastructure, I see no way to exorcise them. And that's exactly what our society needs: an exorcism. Perhaps our loving God will take pity on us and change the hearts of a people who have strayed so far from their real home.

For generations those who suffered persecution, those whose religion, class, or ethnicity had trapped them in a continual cycle of poverty, looked to America as a nation where freedom reigned. In America they could start over and achieve a degree of success unattainable elsewhere. 

Not one of my grandparents was born in this country. Three were born in Ireland and one, also of Irish descent, was born in Canada. They came here seeking freedom, the freedom to work and succeed so they could feed and house their families, educate their children, and freely practice their faith. They didn't feel entitled because no entitlements existed. They took whatever jobs they could find, learned skills that were in demand, and worked hard. There was nothing unique about my grandparents; they were just like millions of others from around the world who came here to experience that same freedom. No longer were these immigrants simply Irish, or Italian, or Russian, or Greek, or British, or German. No longer did they define themselves solely by their class or religion. Now they were Americans! Now they were free men and women, no longer beholden to an upper class or a bureaucracy that lorded over them, but personally responsible for their own lives. I can recall my father, born in 1909, saying that he was most proud of his Irish forebears because "they had the guts to leave the blasted place and come to America!" Amen, Dad.

When they arrived here, they encountered hardships, and bigotry, and hatred. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution didn't stop citizens from sinning. Here in the land of the free some men gave free reign to their baser instincts. Hanging on the wall of my home office is a sign made by the Boston Sign Company in 1915. It reads, "No Irish Need Apply," a not uncommon warning that often met my ancestors when they looked for work. Not very nice, but far better than the lynchings and other atrocities that far too many Black Americans suffered. But despite the rantings of the far-left ideologues of Black Lives Matter, we've come a long way...and for the good.

Today many immigrants come to this country for the same reasons that motivated my grandparents. Many still work hard at multiple, demanding jobs to provide for their families and to offer hope to their children and grandchildren. I see them every day here in central Florida. They came here from Mexico, Jamaica, Haiti, Brazil, or any of a hundred nations. They mow our lawns, pick up our trash, clean our swimming pools, cook our meals, paint our houses, and repave our roads. Many probably accept that they will work in these jobs for the rest of their lives, but see the future through the lives of their children who they hope will go on to be engineers or doctors or teachers or entrepreneurs. Some, already educated in their native countries, came here to escape the institutional oppression of socialist bureaucracies. Since moving to Florida I have been treated by doctors and PAs from Croatia, Russia, Pakistan, and India. I am continually amazed by those I meet, people who have come here from all over the world. Just last week, as on-call chaplains at our local hospital, Diane and I spent several hours visiting patients. On that single morning we met and prayed with patients from Egypt, Hungary, the U.K., Ireland, Brazil, and Colombia -- all here in search of a better life.

Most of today's immigrants will eventually assimilate just as my grandparents did. It may take an extra generation or two because of the multicultural mindset that governs many of our governmental agencies and turns the path to assimilation into an obstacle course. 

This multicultural mindset demands an assumption which I refuse to accept: the idea of cultural equality, that one culture is as good as the next. I disagree because I believe that our Western Civilization, the civilization that grew out of ancient Greek and Roman societies, was leavened by Mosaic Law fulfilled in Christianity, and reached its fullness in Europe and North America, is the greatest civilization our world has experienced. Of course it has its flaws -- many, many flaws. Original sin guarantees that. But even burdened by all its imperfections, Western Civilization far outshines any other. Multiculturalism denies this and would assume that sharia law is just as good, just as ennobling, just as supportive of human life as the Bill of Rights or the Ten Commandments or the Beatitudes. This I cannot accept. And the very fact that millions throughout the world sacrifice so much to come here, shows that most of them cannot accept it either.

But the real problem with multiculturalism is that in practice it simply doesn't work. Need evidence? Just look at the history of what was once Yugoslavia, a phony nation created by the same European elites that gave us World War One and its disastrous consequences. A patchwork of diverse ethnic, religious, and cultural groups, Yugoslavia was formed into a kingdom that experienced only chaos between the wars. After World War Two this "nation" was held together by the oppressive, totalitarian rule of Communist strongman Josip Broz (aka, Marshall Tito). When the dictator died in 1980 the crises erupted once again, resulting in years of inter-ethnic conflict that tore the country apart

Iraq is another patchwork nation, maintained for years by the tyrannical regime of Saddam Hussein and his Baath party. No doubt it will suffer a fate not unlike Yugoslavia and be undone by ethnic and religious strife, no thanks to us. I give it ten years maximum. Or look at the Catalonians who today threaten to create a new nation separate from a Spain whose culture they prefer not to share. And what was Brexit if not one culture's rejection of an attempt to create a multicultural superstate? Ironically, the U.K. may well face a similar rejection within its own borders should the Scots decide to go their own way. Yes, indeed, if a nation seeks to destroy itself, multiculturalism provides the perfect recipe.

Unfortunately, some of today's immigrants do not share our cultural values. Too many come here not for the freedom, but for the entitlements. They carry with them a set of cultural values foreign to, and often destructive of, the foundational values of Western Civilization. But the multicultural elites who welcome them actively discourage assimilation. No need to learn the language. No need to respect our laws if they conflict with your cultural values. No need to assimilate; stay together in your ethnic enclave where you can continue to celebrate and strengthen the culture from which you came.

Perhaps surprisingly, many Americans seem to understand that once the culture dissolves, the society it supports will collapse. Will we succeed in turning things around? Probably not. The opposing forces are likely too entrenched (again, my pessimism).

Western Civilization has had a pretty good run, but one gets the sense that it has aged, that its end is not too far off. I suppose it could end peacefully in the kind of societal hospice the Europeans seem to hope for; but most civilizations die with a bang and not a whimper. 

I hope I am wrong and we can rise up and reclaim our patrimony. But this won't happen unless we reclaim our faith, the "cult" that gives life to a culture. This will require some divine assistance, but "for God all things are possible" [Mt 19:26]. One thing we know for sure: if we seek perfection we'll have to wait for the Heavenly City.