"Justice will be served and the battle will rage. This big dog will fight when you rattle his cage. You'll be sorry that you messed with the U.S. of A. 'Cause we'll put a boot in your ass, it's the American way."
Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue
-Toby Keith
When Superman Returns was released in 2006, countless diehard fans complained about the change from “Truth, Justice and the American way” to “Truth, Justice and all that stuff.” The screenwriters decided to alter the slogan based on their perception of the American way changing from what it once was in 1945. Accordingly, one can assume that these two writers looked at what this phrase means today and then came to the conclusion that if employed it might diminish their international box office results. The rewriting of this popular slogan begs the question, “What did the American way mean in 1945 that it no longer means today, and can it be redeemed?”
When American journalist Tom Brokaw was asked by fellow journalist Tim Russert to share his thoughts during their coverage of the fiftieth anniversary of D-Day he proudly spouted his often-repeated sentiment, “I think this is the greatest generation any society has ever produced”. The generation he was referring to, the “Silent Generation”, is typically known for two things: Bringing America out of The Great Depression and participating in World War II. The focus of most attempting to define this generation is usually drawn towards the sometimes-romanticized tales of bravery taken from the foreign battlefields. If those stories are combined with the frenzied patriotism found back on US soil, any average citizen might find it difficult to question this label of greatness; but was this really the greatest generation that any society has ever produced? Furthermore, was this period the pinnacle of the American way?
If asked, most Americans might offer one of the more popular reasons the United States entered World War II: Concentration camps; social acceptance of the murder of a minority group; disgraceful treatment of women in all walks of life; and imperialistic military campaigns to advance the cause and purpose of a single nation with complete disregard to the international community. Strangely enough that could also be read as a list of crimes that America was committing that very hour.
In 1942 the US Army began rounding up Japanese-Americans and sending them to prison camps where they stayed for three years by order of the President. The same military that had defeated the evil fascists abroad was still shamelessly segregated and would be until July of 1948. That philosophy of segregation based on skin color was so predominant that even the Red Cross was employing a brand of it in their segregated blood banks. Even the much-celebrated President Franklin Roosevelt neglectfully refused to support an anti-lynching bill, as the pressure from Southern Democrats seemed insurmountable. In addition to the fierce racism, rampant sexism was dictating that the wages for women, conducting the same work as a man, should be different (at least until the Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed). Notwithstanding the fact that America was born out of imperialistic military campaigns to advance the British Empire with complete disregard to the indigenous people of the land, she still shook her judgmental finger at the Axis Nations; moreover, such practices continued even after she won her freedom from the crown. This racist, sexist, hypocritical, and atomic bomb dropping (not to mention drafted) generation isn’t the greatest any society has produced; it is simply the only type of generation the western culture seems capable of producing.
The problem today isn’t necessarily the degradation of the idealistic American way, as history plainly shows there never has been a time when the nation lived up to what that phrase implies. The Superman Returns’ screenwriters could have simply done a little homework and left that phrase alone; the meaning hasn’t actually lost anything it is just different. Instead of focusing on African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Native Americans and Women-Americans, sights are now pointed on the Middle East and anyone or thing that resembles that culture. Like how the sanctions on Japan probably led to their attack on Pearl Harbor, the sanctions on Iraq quite possibly played a role in the events of 9/11. General Douglas Macarthur, who famously accepted the Japanese surrender on the deck of the USS Missouri, is quoted saying, “Our government has kept us in a perpetual state of fear - kept us in a continuous stampede of patriotic fervor - with the cry of grave national emergency.” That same patriotic fervor that was used in FDR’s “Infamy Speech” was used by the Bush administration to incite worldwide hysteria over Iraq. It is apparent that unless concerned citizens take drastic measures it is quite possible that the "American Way" might tragically go without ever meaning a thing.
The first step towards redemption would be education. Understanding how the government has behaved in the past could possibly put a frame of reference on their current and future endeavors. If all a person knows is that Columbus set out for a “New World” in the face of widespread panic over a flat-earth theory then he indubitably emerges the heroic navigator. If they knew of his horrific treatment of the indigenous people he encountered and the true motives behind his conquest of foreign lands then his heroism is quickly put into realistic terms. Painting beautiful pictures of historic events is not only unnecessary but also verging on the criminal. Human history is littered with common and grotesque mistakes, and sadly America is no different. There needs to be an effort beyond the usual spin of twenty-four hour news networks to inform the masses of not only where we are but of how we got here. While educated individuals can make informed decisions that aren’t solely driven by fanatical emotions; educated masses cause revolutions. Truth can clearly become a catalyst for change, which is why it has been twisted and withheld, thus keeping it ineffective. Education starts at the individual level and then spreads to the public. Individuals need to take the responsibility to not only read but to ask hard questions. Raise a hand, raise a flag, or just simply raise the question, “Who benefits from this?” A solid rule of thumb, according to Craig Murray, is that “if the government wants you to know it then it probably isn’t true.”
A change in fundamental ideology could naturally follow an honest education and then lead to the beginning of a movement. There needs to be a public outcry from American citizens that demands she remove herself from the throne of the world and start acting as a responsible member of the international community. This idea of intervening as a proselytizer of democracy was never the intentions of the forefathers. George Washington said, “It is our true policy to steer clear of entangling alliances with any portion of the foreign world.” Some will defend such alliances with the claim that they only desire safety from those who envy our freedom and plan us harm. An honorable aim, but reprehensibly ignorant if it leads to a “preventive war” mentality. Starting war to prevent war is not only confusing in theory; it is a terribly difficult sell to the victims. Peace has never been established on the battlefield, whether Germany or Iraq, but in the hearts of citizens growing restless with the status quo. Citizens should arm themselves with the truth (education) and speak out. Whether it’s in a letter, volunteering, or a voting booth their loud cries for an overhaul in policy would drown out attempts to pacify the public with more patriotic nonsense. Tell the government to end the wars; bring the troops home; close the bases that although they are strategic, are an abomination to her neighbors; and spend money on their own people rather than sustaining entangling alliances.
Regardless of how daunting a change of this magnitude is, there is hope. Hope not from the idealist campaign drive or the mediocre post on a forum, but from her people. Although she is responsible for an encyclopedia’s worth of atrocities, America has given the world Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson; Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Jackie Robinson. The reason for hope goes even beyond Mark Twain and Helen Keller, for her critics alone testify to the potential for greatness. No sane individual criticizes a child for being incapable of adult activities anymore than they criticize a mentally handicapped adult for only acting like a child. It is when the capability and potential are there but not met that criticism is warranted. Clearly, given the amount of credible critics today, there is hope for her to be great.
The American way can be redeemed and Superman can once again fight the likes of Lex Luthor in defense of it. Only, the American people (especially Toby Keith) need to let go of their irrational interpretation of it and embrace what it might really mean. As George W. Bush said in his farewell speech (kind of, the italics aren’t his), “We have faced danger and trial, and there is more ahead. But even with the courage of our people and confidence in our ideals, this great nation” might tire … might falter … and might fail.
But if she can pick herself up then she can stand for truth, justice and all that stuff.
Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue
-Toby Keith
When Superman Returns was released in 2006, countless diehard fans complained about the change from “Truth, Justice and the American way” to “Truth, Justice and all that stuff.” The screenwriters decided to alter the slogan based on their perception of the American way changing from what it once was in 1945. Accordingly, one can assume that these two writers looked at what this phrase means today and then came to the conclusion that if employed it might diminish their international box office results. The rewriting of this popular slogan begs the question, “What did the American way mean in 1945 that it no longer means today, and can it be redeemed?”
When American journalist Tom Brokaw was asked by fellow journalist Tim Russert to share his thoughts during their coverage of the fiftieth anniversary of D-Day he proudly spouted his often-repeated sentiment, “I think this is the greatest generation any society has ever produced”. The generation he was referring to, the “Silent Generation”, is typically known for two things: Bringing America out of The Great Depression and participating in World War II. The focus of most attempting to define this generation is usually drawn towards the sometimes-romanticized tales of bravery taken from the foreign battlefields. If those stories are combined with the frenzied patriotism found back on US soil, any average citizen might find it difficult to question this label of greatness; but was this really the greatest generation that any society has ever produced? Furthermore, was this period the pinnacle of the American way?
If asked, most Americans might offer one of the more popular reasons the United States entered World War II: Concentration camps; social acceptance of the murder of a minority group; disgraceful treatment of women in all walks of life; and imperialistic military campaigns to advance the cause and purpose of a single nation with complete disregard to the international community. Strangely enough that could also be read as a list of crimes that America was committing that very hour.
In 1942 the US Army began rounding up Japanese-Americans and sending them to prison camps where they stayed for three years by order of the President. The same military that had defeated the evil fascists abroad was still shamelessly segregated and would be until July of 1948. That philosophy of segregation based on skin color was so predominant that even the Red Cross was employing a brand of it in their segregated blood banks. Even the much-celebrated President Franklin Roosevelt neglectfully refused to support an anti-lynching bill, as the pressure from Southern Democrats seemed insurmountable. In addition to the fierce racism, rampant sexism was dictating that the wages for women, conducting the same work as a man, should be different (at least until the Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed). Notwithstanding the fact that America was born out of imperialistic military campaigns to advance the British Empire with complete disregard to the indigenous people of the land, she still shook her judgmental finger at the Axis Nations; moreover, such practices continued even after she won her freedom from the crown. This racist, sexist, hypocritical, and atomic bomb dropping (not to mention drafted) generation isn’t the greatest any society has produced; it is simply the only type of generation the western culture seems capable of producing.
The problem today isn’t necessarily the degradation of the idealistic American way, as history plainly shows there never has been a time when the nation lived up to what that phrase implies. The Superman Returns’ screenwriters could have simply done a little homework and left that phrase alone; the meaning hasn’t actually lost anything it is just different. Instead of focusing on African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Native Americans and Women-Americans, sights are now pointed on the Middle East and anyone or thing that resembles that culture. Like how the sanctions on Japan probably led to their attack on Pearl Harbor, the sanctions on Iraq quite possibly played a role in the events of 9/11. General Douglas Macarthur, who famously accepted the Japanese surrender on the deck of the USS Missouri, is quoted saying, “Our government has kept us in a perpetual state of fear - kept us in a continuous stampede of patriotic fervor - with the cry of grave national emergency.” That same patriotic fervor that was used in FDR’s “Infamy Speech” was used by the Bush administration to incite worldwide hysteria over Iraq. It is apparent that unless concerned citizens take drastic measures it is quite possible that the "American Way" might tragically go without ever meaning a thing.
The first step towards redemption would be education. Understanding how the government has behaved in the past could possibly put a frame of reference on their current and future endeavors. If all a person knows is that Columbus set out for a “New World” in the face of widespread panic over a flat-earth theory then he indubitably emerges the heroic navigator. If they knew of his horrific treatment of the indigenous people he encountered and the true motives behind his conquest of foreign lands then his heroism is quickly put into realistic terms. Painting beautiful pictures of historic events is not only unnecessary but also verging on the criminal. Human history is littered with common and grotesque mistakes, and sadly America is no different. There needs to be an effort beyond the usual spin of twenty-four hour news networks to inform the masses of not only where we are but of how we got here. While educated individuals can make informed decisions that aren’t solely driven by fanatical emotions; educated masses cause revolutions. Truth can clearly become a catalyst for change, which is why it has been twisted and withheld, thus keeping it ineffective. Education starts at the individual level and then spreads to the public. Individuals need to take the responsibility to not only read but to ask hard questions. Raise a hand, raise a flag, or just simply raise the question, “Who benefits from this?” A solid rule of thumb, according to Craig Murray, is that “if the government wants you to know it then it probably isn’t true.”
A change in fundamental ideology could naturally follow an honest education and then lead to the beginning of a movement. There needs to be a public outcry from American citizens that demands she remove herself from the throne of the world and start acting as a responsible member of the international community. This idea of intervening as a proselytizer of democracy was never the intentions of the forefathers. George Washington said, “It is our true policy to steer clear of entangling alliances with any portion of the foreign world.” Some will defend such alliances with the claim that they only desire safety from those who envy our freedom and plan us harm. An honorable aim, but reprehensibly ignorant if it leads to a “preventive war” mentality. Starting war to prevent war is not only confusing in theory; it is a terribly difficult sell to the victims. Peace has never been established on the battlefield, whether Germany or Iraq, but in the hearts of citizens growing restless with the status quo. Citizens should arm themselves with the truth (education) and speak out. Whether it’s in a letter, volunteering, or a voting booth their loud cries for an overhaul in policy would drown out attempts to pacify the public with more patriotic nonsense. Tell the government to end the wars; bring the troops home; close the bases that although they are strategic, are an abomination to her neighbors; and spend money on their own people rather than sustaining entangling alliances.
Regardless of how daunting a change of this magnitude is, there is hope. Hope not from the idealist campaign drive or the mediocre post on a forum, but from her people. Although she is responsible for an encyclopedia’s worth of atrocities, America has given the world Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson; Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Jackie Robinson. The reason for hope goes even beyond Mark Twain and Helen Keller, for her critics alone testify to the potential for greatness. No sane individual criticizes a child for being incapable of adult activities anymore than they criticize a mentally handicapped adult for only acting like a child. It is when the capability and potential are there but not met that criticism is warranted. Clearly, given the amount of credible critics today, there is hope for her to be great.
The American way can be redeemed and Superman can once again fight the likes of Lex Luthor in defense of it. Only, the American people (especially Toby Keith) need to let go of their irrational interpretation of it and embrace what it might really mean. As George W. Bush said in his farewell speech (kind of, the italics aren’t his), “We have faced danger and trial, and there is more ahead. But even with the courage of our people and confidence in our ideals, this great nation” might tire … might falter … and might fail.
But if she can pick herself up then she can stand for truth, justice and all that stuff.
