A few more Independence Day thoughts

Ask stupid questions, you can guarantee you'll get stupid answers. The Pew Research Center polled this question:

How proud are you to be an American?

WTF? What does that mean? One can take pride in something one achieves through hard work and discipline. Being "an American" is, for almost all of us, a happy accident. (A few people went through hell and immigration snafus to get here; they might be proud of their ingenuity in circumventing obstacles.) We won the human lottery and find ourselves in the richest, if not the sanest or safest, country on earth.

Eighty-three percent of us are "proud" of this. The holdouts, not surprisingly, are younger and browner than the enthusiastic majority.

I could not possibly have answered anything but "Don't Know." The inquiry is meaningless on its face. ***Meanwhile a friend has sent along some thoughts she is going to use in an Independence Day sermon. I like them:

On this day, I wish independence for all -- that no one would have to stay in an abusive relationship because they cannot afford to be out of it; that all people around the world would be free of oppression-- political, economic, social; that every person could break free from addiction or other stumbling blocks that keep us from being whole and creative; that every child would have the circumstances that allow her or him to grow up with a strong will, a kind heart, and an indomitable spirit.