Continued Confessions

on this federal holiday

I’m glad that all three of my daily calendars recognize that today is JUNETEENTH which was designated as a federal holiday by President Joe Biden in 2021, with the official name of Juneteenth National Independence Day to commemorate the ending of slavery in the United States. See The Guardian newspaper for further details about the choice of this day in particular in an article by Adria R. Walker entitled “Juneteenth is the most widely known US emancipation celebration—but it’s not the only one.”

But I was sad this morning to see that the traffic to work seemed about as usual when I took my morning walkies. I’m not sure whether federal holidays are recognized by all employers, but I would have hoped that those who rely quite heavily on government contracts would have taken the day off. I was pleased to know that at least one local bank will be closed today. I haven’t checked on some of the others.

Anyway, all of this is to continue my understanding of what it means to be an American citizen. As I’ve told you before, I am a naturalized American who spent many years as a registered alien. Some British heritage still lingers. And I took my flag from the Isle of Man to Saturday’s protest rally, so I checked out that history some more too. It’s quite complicated actually, and the three legs of Mann depicted on the flag date back to Saxon times. It is now known as a self-governing British Crown Dependency, and King Charles is known as the Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Governor. Its motto in Latin is Quocunque Jeceris Stabit, which translates to “Wherever you throw it, it shall stand.” The United Kingdom is responsible for the Island’s defense (or defence as spelled there).

And speaking of flags, as I returned home this morning I passed the restaurant at the bottom of my street, which had loads of flags flying including a large one from the Dominican Republic. It was flying free this morning, and I was able to read the motto in Spanish, which is “Dios, Patria, Libertad” which translates to “God, Homeland, Freedom” with a very stirring musical national anthem which I listened to on my phone. Wikipedia will give you more information about its governance.

All these forays into national identity have been stirred by the chaos and confusion in the United States of America. The topsy-turvy world of states rights or the unitary executive theory or whether religion should be part of government, all combine for a very unsettling time. I try to intersperse my obsessive attention to political details with some enjoyable entertainment from teatime on. However, yesterday I actually spent the hour from 5 to 6 in a Zoom class from The Freedom Academy where Asha Rangappa, Law Professor at Yale, spoke with Zephyr Teachout, Law Professor at Fordham. The specific topic centered around one of Zephyr’s books, which is entitled “Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin’s Snuff Box to Citizens United.” What a joy to listen and learn! And by the way, while I am still avoiding any visuals in my own Substack, I was interested to see that Zephyr was very clear in the Zoom, but her background was intentionally blurred. I’m sometimes distracted by trying to read the titles of the books behind many of the speakers. Technology keeps marching on.

RESIST ALWAYS

TTFN