Oh, I guess I react to her response to that particular subject the way I react to a lot of things that come out of her mouth-which is to say immediate eye rolling followed by a kind of alienated despair. Hence, prospective elected officials who blather on about how the country needs to be "unapologetic" in the world. Seems like we've lost that sort of societal hand-wringing. But just as often, maybe more often, they held days of fast-collective penance for their communal sins. When we think of them, we think of Thanksgiving, because of their habit to celebrate days of thanksgiving in honor of various blessings. That fear, that sense of solemn duty, was what kept their delusions of grandeur in check. They saw themselves as their god's pets and as such were terrified they wouldn't live up to their deity's faith in them.
I think it's also worth reading about how some of the Puritan writers implored their shipmates to take up the responsibility that comes with blessings. I do think it's worthwhile to question the notion, and thus the origin, of American exceptionalism. What are we missing in our understanding of ourselves as Americans if we don't know much more about the Puritans than what we've seen on "Happy Days?"_
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