We live in interesting times, some might call them chaotic or tumultuous times, and we wouldn’t disagree.
But as crazy as the past few days have felt, this is far from the most interesting period in our country’s relatively short history, and we think it’s important to keep that in mind, especially at a time when big news is making it feel like the ground is shaking beneath our feet.
That being said, if you’re feeling like the events unfolding on the national stage have been a series of dramatic changes, you’re not alone. Think about everything that has happened over the past few weeks.
It was just a month ago that President Joe Biden had a shockingly disorganized performance in a debate. His apparent cognitive decline in the eyes of the world called into question his viability and leadership as a Democratic presidential candidate. Former President Donald Trump was in his usual self, practically spewing lies about a stolen election and other falsehoods, but he didn’t seem as lost on stage as Biden. Overall, it was a terrible debate, a low point in our country’s recent political history. Biden tried to dismiss the debate as a bad night and insist he would continue the campaign, but the damage was already done. As the days went by, Democrats came out more and more publicly, pleading with the president to understand what the American people had witnessed with their own eyes: he needed to withdraw from the race. Two weekends ago in Pennsylvania, a crazed 20-year-old with an AR-15 rifle pointed it at Donald Trump during a campaign rally and fired a shot, grazing Trump’s ear, killing one audience member and wounding others. The gunman was killed by a Secret Service sniper, but the security failure was so unforgivable that it forced the Secret Service’s leader to resign. Days after the assassination attempt, Republicans celebrated Trump’s nomination for president at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio was selected as Trump’s running mate. Just last weekend, Biden did something no president had done since Lyndon Baines Johnson: he withdrew from the presidential race. Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination, and Harris quickly secured enough delegate support to win the nomination ahead of next month’s convention in Chicago.
All of this makes me wonder what’s going to happen next week.
But looking back, Americans have lived through far more interesting times. I mentioned President Johnson, but many of us will remember the horrific violence that took place inside and outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968, amid the social unrest caused by the Vietnam War.
Many of us will remember that September morning 23 years ago, when a plane flew into the World Trade Center in New York, then another, then another, and then the Pentagon. We knew we were under attack, and our country, our world, was changed forever.
There are still among us a precious few who remember our nation’s sacrifices in World War II and the hardships of the Great Depression.
And we haven’t looked back in 100 years.
Interesting times in history impact our times: our choices and actions shape the history our children and grandchildren will learn about, but more importantly, they shape the world they will share.
These are truly interesting times.
