Hi friends,
Short issue this week in light of the holiday. I was going to write a longer form piece about the concerning (if not new) trend of those on the Right (e.g. Fox News) criticizing Liberals/Democrats of “hating” America. Honestly, it was exhausting, and so I decided against it.
So I’ll just write to say Happy Fourth of July.
It is a great joy to me to live in a country where we have enshrined in our founding documents the notion that all countries and governments—like all people—are imperfect, and that a nation only grows stronger from the criticisms, ideas, and inventions of its citizens. Today is quite literally a celebration of political critique; the Fourth of July is the greatest annual celebration of speaking truth to power on the globe.
The great unfolding of American history is a continuing struggle to find, protect, and use the voice of everyday citizens in building a society where we might effect Safety and Happiness for ourselves and our posterity.
I am proud to be a part of that history.
I am proud to live in the greatest country on earth—a country that is great because it knows it still has far more greatness to work towards.
I am proud to be an American, and proud to say that I love something as imperfect at the United States.
I am proud of that love because loving something perfect is easy. Loving something flawed takes the courage to put in the hard work love requires.
May we this next year, and every year thereafter, do the hard work together in bringing about a more perfect union.
And, of course may we take today to celebrate this privilege.
The Links
Follow-up* to one of last week’s top charts on why folks leaving urban cores != folks moving to middle America. (s/o Kate Hannick)
The Simpsons, taken one frame at a time* (s/o Eana Meng)
In honor* of the semifinals of UEFA EURO 2020, here’s a great (and short) documentary following a FIFA referee on matchday (s/o Tristan Wagner).
Lagniappe
Go take some photos this holiday weekend. If you don’t have a standalone camera your phone still has a great camera inside it. Crop aggressively. Try to restrict yourself to only 4-5 visual elements in a single shot. If you aren’t sure if a photo is “good” or not, look at it in black and white (interesting color often hides bad composition).
Graph(s) of the week
[WSJ] Despite being ~7m jobs short of where we were pre-pandemic, folks say that jobs are plentiful.
[WSJ] And, relatedly, consumers are feeling almost as confident as they were in 2019. The economy has recovered, psychologically speaking.
Your friend,
Harrison