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Defining American
Exceptionalism
by Wesley May
The true meaning of “American
Exceptionalism” has become somewhat
confusing since the days of our Founding
Fathers. Exceptionalism was never
conceived as just a facet of the American
psyche. Our Founding Fathers created true
EXCEPTIONALISM through the transcendent
principles for governance incorporated into our
Declaration of Independence and Constitution.
These documents are the true fountainhead of
American Exceptionalism because they insure
for citizens the protection of “unalienable
Rights endowed by their Creator” (not the
government) within a political framework based
on “consent of the governed” and “separation
of powers” constrained by a system of “checks
and balances”! A prescient codicil was added by
John Adams: “Our Constitution was made only
for a moral and religious people. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other.”
So how does one gauge the limits of morality?
The necessary guidance is provided by Jesus’s
Great Commandment to his Disciples: “So in
everything, do to others what you would have
them do to you, for this sums up the Law and
the Prophets.”
It should be evident that societal dynamics
may create an ebb and flow in social trends.
Such has been our case over the last 50 years
which tended to weaken John Adams’ moral
imperative. The clarity of the Biblical guidance
makes it the best hope for finding the way back
to reassert the EXCEPTIONALISM envisaged by
our Founding Fathers.
I believe the “traditional Nuclear Family,” (i.e.
mother, father, and children from the marriage),
is the sine qua non for reinvigorating the
governing EXCEPTIONALISM bequeathed to us
via the sublime documents mentioned earlier.
I was blessed to be nurtured in such a family,
and, in spite of the greater societal complexity
now, it can still be an effective catalyst for
understanding this complexity better.
It appears that we have grown lax from 1970 to
2013 in monitoring recent demographic groups,
or cohorts: (Generation X, Millennials, and
Generation Z). The Nuclear Family did not fare
well in these last 50 years. The number of family
households dropped from 81% to 66%; nuclear
family from 40 to 19%; unmarried mothers
jumped from 7% to 48%. However, a positive
note is that the current cohort, Generation
Z, is more conservative than Millennials. A
comparative study found Generation Z youth
had lower participation rates than Millennials.
Teen pregnancy: 40% less. Drug and alcohol
abuse: 38% less. Late high school graduation:
28% less.
Significantly, the dominant, consensus GenZ
characteristic is its ability to exploit the Internet
to retrieve information and interact with
others. In a planning meeting for this article,
I described a damaging inter-generational
change since attending high school in early
1950’s … i.e., prohibiting mandated Bible
reading in public schools. In a matter of
seconds, the protagonist of this article, Natalia
Peretz, used her smartphone to get complete
information concerning Supreme Court ruling
on June 17, 1963, that declared such activity
unconstitutional in School District of Abington
Township v. Schempp. The strategic and
tactical effects of such prompt, comprehensive
access to relevant data may be the big, future
“game-changer” for both policy and execution
activities!
A well-documented, post-1964’s “War on
Poverty” analysis shows sharp decrease of
families with married parents. Formerly, almost
all children were born to married couples. Since
1964, births by single mothers have rocketed
from 7% to 41%. Since 2013, single mothers
now tend to unite with government welfare
funded by taxpayers and away from the fathers
of their children. This welfare state “enables
single parenthood” with means-tested welfare
programs, while reducing the financial need
for marriage. Irresponsibly, the Census Bureau
continues to ignore, as “family income,” most of
the annual, near-trillion dollar welfare payouts,
falsely inflating the true “poor population.”
Heritage Foundation concludes that if Lyndon
Johnson’s goal was to convert “tax-eaters” to
“taxpayers,” “the War on Poverty has been a
colossal flop,” (now get a grip on your nerves)
in spite of SPENDING the equivalent of
$22,000,000,000,000 (i.e., TRILLION) in its first
50 years!
But there are some encouraging trends,
spear-headed by Generation Z., portending an
inflection pointing toward recovery.
CHURCH ATTENDANCE
COHORT BIRTH YEARS ATTENDANCE
Change (approximate, varying estimates)
Baby Boomers mid-1940’s-early 1960’s 26%
Generation X mid-1966’-early 1976’s 21%
Millennials mid-1977’s-early 1994s 8%
(low point)
Generation Z early 1995 mid-2012 24%
(Big increase)
This moral-based parameter is supported
by 2008-2014 data, showing Generation Z’s
improving trends by the following: A 40% drop
in teen pregnancy. A 38% drop in drug and
alcohol abuse. A 28% drop in the percentage of
teens who did not graduate on time from high
school.
So I remain optimistic about what Generation
Z may accomplish. They have already shown, in
the surveys I’ve read, a rejuvenated respect for
elders like me. But this optimism is not based just
on dry statistics… its real foundation is much
more personal…my developing friendship
with Natalia Peretz, a Pinecrest senior who
considers herself to be a strong GenerationZ’er.
She believes she’s in biggest wave of potential
conservatism that can reverse cohort trends.
So she is a good model for discussing how her
cohort may reverse the trends that contributed
to the decay of the nuclear family over the last
40+ years.
She and I will soon share one of the strongest
bonds in life, as shipmates who attended the
Naval Academy, which she will enter in June,
as member of Class of 2022. She is a proud
daughter of Pinehurst, who was graduated from
Pinecrest, June 9th! I had a chance meeting with
Natalia and her mentoring mother, Gerlind,
at Panera Bread in March. As I walked by their
table, Natalia noticed my Navy jacket and asked
whether I attended the Academy? I answered,
“Yes!” She responded, saying she begins, “Plebe
Summer” soon with Class of 2022. That was
the start of this very rewarding project to write
this article featuring Natalia. As I got to know
the family better, my amazement grew rapidly
for a family that had already mentored her to
a magnificent work ethic and mature sense of
personal responsibility … prime indicators of
GenerationZ membership.
I already foresee in her that vital personal
attribute and almost certain assurance of future
success, especially in a military environment …
namely, her search for greater knowledge and
broader experience to feed her quest for ever
greater achievements! She will be an “All ahead
flank” speed naval officer!
Graduation day 60 years ago was my
proudest Navy moment! I was in the small group
of graduates who had his diploma presented
individually by President Eisenhower, followed
by his grateful congratulatory handshake. And
I now say that Natalia is much better qualified
to enter the Academy than I ever was … even
though I had gained two years of college
experience at Columbia University prior to
Annapolis. And she can thank her parents’
mentoring for much of this difference. She has
acquired resources that I did not have as a Plebe,
so she should easily surpass my academic and
leadership accomplishments. I would not be
surprised if she is graduated at the top of her
class!
The Peretz family is “old fashioned,” a
true throwback to the time when I matured,
1940’s-50’s. She has great respect for her elders
(another Z-trait) … the influence of dad, an Israeli
whose service in the Israel Defense Forces made
such major impact, that Natalia, by the early
age of 10, showed interest in a military career
… strongly reinforced by her extended Israeli
family which includes 19 cousins who also had
served in the IDF. To this day, that respect and
consideration of Israeli family bonds endures in
Natalia’s almost monthly FACEBOOK contacts
with her grandmother in Israel, with fluent
conversations in Hebrew and French! (Frequent
access and using social media to cement bonds
with family and friends, yet another Z-trait.)
Natalia, in addition to her native English, is
fluent in Hebrew and French and in reading
German and Russian. One exercise that really
stimulated her (and impressed me) was to read
Tolstoy’s War and Peace in its original combined
Russian and French text! Now that’s a challenge!
Looking toward the future she hopes to
acquire a medical specialty, which, when
No. 130 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. p.27
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