Brilliant essay, Joe. A moving call to arms. I’ve always loved Macaulay, and I knew Churchill did too—but I had no idea he’d memorized the entire poem!
"Macaulay notes how heroism and the defense of shared values actually united Romans"
But we no longer have "shared values" in this multicultural, diverse USA. But we did once back when the Founders established the United States. The United States began as an implicit ethnic state, whose Protestant European identity was taken for granted. As a result, the founding fathers made few remarks about ethnicity, but John Jay famously stated in 1787 that America was ‘one united people, a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in their manners and customs."’ a prominent statement in one of the republic’s founding philosophical documents that attracted no disagreement. Enlightenment thinkers were actually the originators of a science of ethnic differences, which has since been producing ever more empirical knowledge, and has today convincingly shown that ethnicity is not merely a social construct but also a biological substrate. As Edward O. Wilson, Pierre van den Berghe, and Frank Salter have written, shared ethnicity is an expression of extended kinship at the genetic level; members of an ethnic group are biologically related in the same way that members of a family are related even though the genetic connection is not as strongly marked. Numerous papers and the academic research and literature have come out supporting the view that humans are ethnocentric and that such altruistic dispositions as sharing, loyalty, caring, and even motherly love, are exhibited primarily and intensively within in-groups rather than toward a universal “we” in disregard for one’s community. Francis Fukuyama points out, shared norms and altruistic values - persistence, thrift, honesty and reciprocity - create a bond of trust between inhabitants within productive societies. Fukuyama recognizes the importance of biology, in terms of how kin ties and reciprocal altruism are “hard-wired” into humans. The element of trust fails to take root in severely corrupt nations like Nigeria, primarily because of the lack of human qualities essential for “social capital” and the endurance of civil society. Most research seems to conclude that the difference between economically prosperous nations and backward third world countries is directly attributed to selected cultural traits.
But then you slip in the reference to "Oct. 7" and "American Jews."
What does either of those have to do with Building America or Fighting for America?
Romans guarding the bridge across the Tiber were not concerned with Athens, or Greece, or Egypt, or any other foreign power that wanted something from them.
Build America for Americans! Brave and Great Days--for America. Let hostile foreign powers fight their own battles. None of our business.
Beautiful writing and inspiring call to arms. But while I share most of your viewpoints, I think calling centrists uncontroversial cowards is hugely off base. In fact, being a moderate is brave today in a world that negates you attention, likes, and in-group satisfaction if you don't move to the extreme and accuse the other side of destroying our future
Joe, I really enjoyed this essay. Your writing style is like a fresh breath of air! Congrats! I found 8VC through findfunding.vc and I think there is a strong alignment with your investments in companies like Campus and what we've been building. By next year, 75% of the workforce will be digital natives, set to disrupt a $330B+ global corporate training market. With 86% of them preferring game-based training, we are uniquely positioned to serve enterprises focusing on this new generation. Our modular platform allows us to serve enterprises of all sizes only at $45/month and democratize behavioral skills development just like Salesforce democratized CRM. We've engaged with 128 HR teams and already picked 5 companies to work with. I'd love an opportunity to share more. Thank you so much!
Beautiful. The sad part is that the people for decay have communities (campus protestors have a sense of community). The people building and fighting decay need a welcoming community, not just a circle of a few wealthy people. You need the billionaires to mingle with the grassroots, and that’s how you change the culture.
Brilliant essay, Joe. A moving call to arms. I’ve always loved Macaulay, and I knew Churchill did too—but I had no idea he’d memorized the entire poem!
Outstanding article Joe!
The ending idea of your post Joe are beautifully rendered by Longfellow in his poem "A Psalm of Life".
"Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again."
Well said Joe- nice work on CNBC yesterday as well.
“I have not yet begun to fight.” - John Paul Jones
"Macaulay notes how heroism and the defense of shared values actually united Romans"
But we no longer have "shared values" in this multicultural, diverse USA. But we did once back when the Founders established the United States. The United States began as an implicit ethnic state, whose Protestant European identity was taken for granted. As a result, the founding fathers made few remarks about ethnicity, but John Jay famously stated in 1787 that America was ‘one united people, a people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in their manners and customs."’ a prominent statement in one of the republic’s founding philosophical documents that attracted no disagreement. Enlightenment thinkers were actually the originators of a science of ethnic differences, which has since been producing ever more empirical knowledge, and has today convincingly shown that ethnicity is not merely a social construct but also a biological substrate. As Edward O. Wilson, Pierre van den Berghe, and Frank Salter have written, shared ethnicity is an expression of extended kinship at the genetic level; members of an ethnic group are biologically related in the same way that members of a family are related even though the genetic connection is not as strongly marked. Numerous papers and the academic research and literature have come out supporting the view that humans are ethnocentric and that such altruistic dispositions as sharing, loyalty, caring, and even motherly love, are exhibited primarily and intensively within in-groups rather than toward a universal “we” in disregard for one’s community. Francis Fukuyama points out, shared norms and altruistic values - persistence, thrift, honesty and reciprocity - create a bond of trust between inhabitants within productive societies. Fukuyama recognizes the importance of biology, in terms of how kin ties and reciprocal altruism are “hard-wired” into humans. The element of trust fails to take root in severely corrupt nations like Nigeria, primarily because of the lack of human qualities essential for “social capital” and the endurance of civil society. Most research seems to conclude that the difference between economically prosperous nations and backward third world countries is directly attributed to selected cultural traits.
"...will American builders fight for America?"
Bravo! Great question!
But then you slip in the reference to "Oct. 7" and "American Jews."
What does either of those have to do with Building America or Fighting for America?
Romans guarding the bridge across the Tiber were not concerned with Athens, or Greece, or Egypt, or any other foreign power that wanted something from them.
Build America for Americans! Brave and Great Days--for America. Let hostile foreign powers fight their own battles. None of our business.
Beautiful writing and inspiring call to arms. But while I share most of your viewpoints, I think calling centrists uncontroversial cowards is hugely off base. In fact, being a moderate is brave today in a world that negates you attention, likes, and in-group satisfaction if you don't move to the extreme and accuse the other side of destroying our future
https://patriciahalfenwexler.medium.com/the-issue-underlying-every-issue-one-we-must-tackle-to-hold-our-society-and-institutions-together-5826e1dcfa90
Joe, I really enjoyed this essay. Your writing style is like a fresh breath of air! Congrats! I found 8VC through findfunding.vc and I think there is a strong alignment with your investments in companies like Campus and what we've been building. By next year, 75% of the workforce will be digital natives, set to disrupt a $330B+ global corporate training market. With 86% of them preferring game-based training, we are uniquely positioned to serve enterprises focusing on this new generation. Our modular platform allows us to serve enterprises of all sizes only at $45/month and democratize behavioral skills development just like Salesforce democratized CRM. We've engaged with 128 HR teams and already picked 5 companies to work with. I'd love an opportunity to share more. Thank you so much!
Always insightful thanks Joe!
Outside of Stand Together, who shares these convictions and can mount not just pushback, but advance?
Very well said.
Beautiful. The sad part is that the people for decay have communities (campus protestors have a sense of community). The people building and fighting decay need a welcoming community, not just a circle of a few wealthy people. You need the billionaires to mingle with the grassroots, and that’s how you change the culture.