By David Himmel

In 1994, Rivers Cuomo and his band Weezer, released The Blue Album, which included the song, “The World has Turned and Left Me Here.” The tune is a boy crying out that no one, not the girl and not the world, cares about him. The whole world has turned on him, walked away, and left him standing there with his pants at his ankles and his dick in his hand.

We’re all, as Americans, feeling a little like 1994 Rivers Cuomo. But the situation is a little different for us. Yes, the world, the global community we once operated in, has turned away from us. And rightfully so. America treated the global community like shit for too long, and it ramped up the abuse by refusing to play along these last four years. The world, however, is not a victim and chose to walk away from the unbalanced and destructive relationship America was forcing. More importantly, however, is that our country has turned away from us—turned on us—and left us with our pants at our ankles and our dicks in our hands.*

Our country, like our economy, are not individual, self-sustaining, self-aware, conscious beings. They cannot make choices. They are tools and results of our actions. Us. We the People. So when I say that America has turned on us, I am saying that We have turned on ourselves. It’s time to stop caring about our country and start caring about ourselves.

Don Hall is right. The Civil War isn’t coming. It’s already here. America won’t collapse in a heap of ash. It’s already burning. (And now would be a good time to stick with the theme of quoting musicians, but I’m not patient enough today to write a paragraph about Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.”) There is literal blood in the streets. Innocents murdered by children with guns. Innocents murdered by men with guns and knees and the legal protection to kill. Authority reigns. Dissent is squashed as quickly as possible. Our democracy isn’t crumbling. It’s already broken up and scattered on the debate stage. President Trump and the Republicans have done their best to sow doubt in our longstanding democratic process and have refused to adapt with the changing times—another longstanding American tradition. And the Democrats have long been too feckless to stop them.

Liberals are terrified. Terrified another four years of Trump and McConnell will mean at least a generation of rights being revoked. Terrified that militias, angry and emboldened militant police, white supremacy and anti-Semitic groups like The Proud Boys will occupy our streets with weapons at the ready. Terrified that the environment will continue to do its damndest to wipe out its aggressors with floods and fires and droughts and blistering heat. Terrified that hundreds of thousands more will die as COVID-19 rages through the countryside. Terrified they’ll never have brunch again. Terrified that Sunday Funday is as extinct as the dodo.

Conservatives are also terrified. Terrified that Blacks and Latinxs and women and LGBTQA+ will replace them. Terrified that equal rights for all means fewer rights for them. Terrified that a centrist or liberal or progressive government will mean their guns will be taken from their homes, that police departments will be broken up and cops will be forced into detainment camps. That nasty feminists will run around having abortions three weeks after their children are born. Terrified that the economy will no longer respect modern capitalism and they’ll be forced to give all of their money to the poor losers who just couldn’t find their own bootstraps. Terrified progressives will take their elitist money, fly to heaven and kill God—again. Terrified Santa Claus will be beaten and raped with a Starbucks cup by Hanukkah Harry while Mohammed watches from the foot of the bed.

Everything either side—any side—has done since this nation’s founding has been in the interest of this nation. “For God and Country.” We have always wanted America to be great. And, yes, there have been periods in the nation’s history when America was great. Perceived that way by the global community. And perceived that way by its own people. And that’s where our failure has its roots; comfortably nestled in the great myth of American Exceptionalism.

The myth of American Exceptionalism is what conservatives can’t let go of. It’s what makes them think life was is like and should be like Father Knows Best and The Donna Reed Show. But America is The Simpsons. Always has been. For most of its citizenry, anyway. Yet, liberals and progressives buy into or have been duped by the myth of American Exceptionalism, too. That idea that America can be great. It can’t be great. Because it is a nation made of and guided by humans with various ideals and desires and tribes. And so, we fight. But American can be better. For all of us.

 But before that can happen, we have to stop thinking of ourselves as one nation. We’re not. We’re a chunk of land with broken governments and an electorate spinning out of control with fear and fury. We the People are too twisted up to make sound choices, caring choices, humanist choices. It’s all rightful rage and petty indignation.

We need to look inward. We need to take care of ourselves. Our household. Our extended family. Then take care of our friends. If we can all do that, then our country might become the thing we wanted it to be. Then the Myth of American Exceptionalism will become the Fact of American Humanitarian Ingenuity. We must stop acting as if there’s a unifying message, as if we all pledge allegiance to the flag for the same reasons if at all.

A nation is never greater than the sum of its parts. Thinking so is, and has been, our well-followed roadmap to destruction. Because we make up the nation. We, as a collective of units, are the nation. It is not us.

But that idea of what a nation can be, that thing we always looked to to identify us, our nation. Well, our nation has turned and left us here because we long ago turned on ourselves. 

*The term “dick” is being used metaphorically and is not to be taken as a statement of gender or sex identification, nor is it intended to exclude any persons who do not have dicks. Furthermore, use of the phrase, “pants at our ankles” is not intended to exclude any persons who choose not to, or are unable to wear pants. This, too, is a metaphor. I could have written, simply, “our country has turned away from us—turned on us—and left us vulnerable.” That is the intended meaning. I am painting a picture and comparing it to the imagery used to describe the male figure in the first paragraph. “Vulnerable” just wouldn’t have the same literary grace—if you’ll please accept my bold assumption that this writing I’m doing is literary. Point is, don’t let a dick joke get your panties in a bunch.