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Nancy Jane Moore's avatar

Brilliant synopsis of our history.

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Lara's avatar

All correct but profoundly depressing! So the question is: where to from here? What now? We need a crystal ball

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Susanna J. Sturgis's avatar

We keep putting one foot in front of the other, supporting each other as we do it. I remind myself every day that African Americans suffered and resisted slavery for almost 250 years, and they've had to keep fighting ever since. Too many white people are weary and discouraged after less than a decade. (I'm white, and I'm too pissed off to get weary.)

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Vel Santic's avatar

All excellently told the long story short. As to the 2024 election, I'd say the combo of all those corrupt things atop of the purges of millions of Democratic voters anywhere the tRumputinists i.e. "gop" had any powers, instead of "not this but that".

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Paula B.'s avatar

Yep, all correct. The colonies were founded on two things: religious extremism and greed. That's all we really need to know.

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Susanna J. Sturgis's avatar

I've been pondering this ever since you posted it. The colonies were also founded on *opposition* to religious extremism (e.g., the intolerance of the Church of England) and lack of opportunity for anyone who wasn't already rich and well-connected. IOW, you're missing a lot. I hope you'll take a deeper look at what was going on back in the 17th and 18th centuries.

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Paula B.'s avatar

Yes, the church was intolerant of splinter groups. But those groups were generally pretty extreme. If you look at what happened during the Great Awakening you will see how extremely they developed. Obviously I'm simplifying, but the overall motivations were for religious freedom and to make money. This does not mean people didn't come for other reasons; they did. (As you mention, some came as indentured servants, who were promised various assets upon completion of their contracts, for example.) So yes, there's more, but from my point of view, the bottom line is money and religion.

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