December 19, 2014 at 6:10 p.m.
Facing failures makes us exceptional
Editorial
“American exceptionalism” is one of those phrases that’s open to a variety of interpretations.
It’s slippery enough that even though President Obama says he believes in it, his critics maintain he holds the exceptional nature of America in disdain.
So which is it?
That all depends upon what you mean by “American exceptionalism.”
And how one interprets those words says a great deal about how you see this country’s interactions with the rest of the world.
Does the phrase mean that America is an exceptional nation, the longest and most expansive democracy on earth, a place of unrivalled opportunity, a country that despite its flaws continues to attempt to perfect itself, a sort of international gold standard by which other countries should measure themselves?
Or does it mean that — because of all the qualities mentioned in the preceding paragraph — America gets to play by different rules from the rest of the world?
Those are two distinctly different definitions, and the one you choose speaks volumes.
For instance, when the recent Senate report on CIA torture in the name of national security is viewed through the prism of “American exceptionalism,” do you conclude, “We are better than that”?
Or do you conclude, “We’re allowed to do that because we are exceptional as a nation”?
Our heart is with the former rather than the latter.
We believe America is exceptional precisely because “we are better than that,” precisely because we set a higher standard and because we know that’s what makes this country great.
The airwaves and news columns have been full of folks for whom the second definition is a touchstone. They honestly, sincerely believe what they say.
But they are wrong.
And by arguing in defense of torture, they jettison true “exceptionalism” and place America in the sordid company of tinpot dictators, despots and authoritarian regimes who have callously rationalized the same sorts of tactics for centuries.
We, as a nation, are better than that.
Torture shames us. Openly discussing our failures and weak moments makes us stronger.
In fact, that’s what truly makes America exceptional. —J.R.
It’s slippery enough that even though President Obama says he believes in it, his critics maintain he holds the exceptional nature of America in disdain.
So which is it?
That all depends upon what you mean by “American exceptionalism.”
And how one interprets those words says a great deal about how you see this country’s interactions with the rest of the world.
Does the phrase mean that America is an exceptional nation, the longest and most expansive democracy on earth, a place of unrivalled opportunity, a country that despite its flaws continues to attempt to perfect itself, a sort of international gold standard by which other countries should measure themselves?
Or does it mean that — because of all the qualities mentioned in the preceding paragraph — America gets to play by different rules from the rest of the world?
Those are two distinctly different definitions, and the one you choose speaks volumes.
For instance, when the recent Senate report on CIA torture in the name of national security is viewed through the prism of “American exceptionalism,” do you conclude, “We are better than that”?
Or do you conclude, “We’re allowed to do that because we are exceptional as a nation”?
Our heart is with the former rather than the latter.
We believe America is exceptional precisely because “we are better than that,” precisely because we set a higher standard and because we know that’s what makes this country great.
The airwaves and news columns have been full of folks for whom the second definition is a touchstone. They honestly, sincerely believe what they say.
But they are wrong.
And by arguing in defense of torture, they jettison true “exceptionalism” and place America in the sordid company of tinpot dictators, despots and authoritarian regimes who have callously rationalized the same sorts of tactics for centuries.
We, as a nation, are better than that.
Torture shames us. Openly discussing our failures and weak moments makes us stronger.
In fact, that’s what truly makes America exceptional. —J.R.
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