Happy birthday to my favorite country on earth. America may not be the only country I'm concerned about, but it's the only country I feel a part of. Sounds silly, but I'm an American. My father and mother were first generation Americans from immigrant parents who left Europe and never looked back. There was never a sense of dual loyalty. Europe, the land of Jew killers extraordinaire, never held much appeal for my family.
As a teenager, I worked on a kibbutz in Israel (obviously dating myself since shortly afterwards, many kibbutzes went out of business), and then traveled through Europe by rail. Most people my age did that, and for the most part I encountered underlying hostility towards Americans. There was a feeling of superiority among Europeans, especially since Nixon has recently been ousted.
In fact, one Euro, in France, approached me on the street to ask me how I felt about it. I had been traveling, at the time, with a Canadian, and I really got pissed. I told this man how proud I was to be an American, and how our system works. We got rid of a corrupt politician, and the republic held firm. He was shocked, and ran off. The Canadian was impressed, and me, well, I decided Europeans were just stupid.
My opinion of Europeans hasn't changed, nor my pride in my country. Happy Birthday, America. For all your faults, you're the best there is. G-d bless, and keep you strong.
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