Steve Trinward Steve Trinward is "Soul Proprietor" of Trinwords.Com (wordsmithing and editing services) and a contributing editor for Rational Review.
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Born on the
four(teen)th of July I've often felt it necessary to apologize, as a good libertarian, for being born on the holiday of the wrong revolution… Instead of American flags, and "we hold these truths to be self evident," on my birthday they celebrate "liberté, égalité, fraternité" -- with the distinct emphasis on the second term. Of course, there's nothing intrinsically wrong with "equality" -- provided that it means "equal opportunity" rather than "equal outcome" (which is inherently impossible in human culture). Trouble is, the French took this stuff seriously, thinking they could indeed bring down the aristocracy by artificial means, including their own version of the Procrustean bed, the guillotine. Lop off their heads and make them the same as the rest of us, they said, ignoring the implication that they thereby labelled themselves "headless morons." Libertarians, and most folks in fact, are pretty well aware that such a method does not lead to equality of opportunity, nor does it in fact keep the "aristos" (those who manage to avoid the blade, that is?) from rising back to the top of society. We see it in every culture: in Soviet Russia, they called them "commissars;" in America we call them politicians, bureaucrats, lobbyists and far worse epithets. So, as I say, I continue to labor under the burden of the "wrong" cause celebrating my own nativity. Not that this has stopped me from attending Bastille Day festivities on occasion, to soak up the revelry and pretend it is for me. I also considered at one time going to Paris for the 1989 party, just to be surrounded by party-goers as I completed my 40th year on the planet … but the usual financial considerations belayed that one. I have also taken solace in the fact that a number of rather famous, and fairly few infamous, people have shared my birthday down through the ages. The first one I found out about was former President Gerald Ford; I decided that of all the Chiefs in the tribe in my lifetime, he had probably been the least harmful, with only the "Mayaguez incident" to stain his foreign policy record, and the relative success of his "Whip Inflation Now" campaign on the domestic side. And stuck between Richard Nixon and Jimmy Carter, he seems like a breath of fresh air, in spite (or maybe because?) of his legendary clumsiness afoot. (And yes, I know he pardoned Nixon, and signed off on the Warren Report whitewash of the JFK murder; nobody's perfect!) Then I discovered that Ingmar Bergman also shared the day. Oh well, I have my dark and brooding times as well, and I only hope that once in a while I stumble onto some facts as elemental as he did, about relationships both human and spiritual. Another exploration, into the realm of early feminist leaders, uncovered the commonality with Ms. Emmeline (Emily) Pankhurst. Although she and her husband, Richard, were both confirmed socialists, they were also instrumental in fighting for women's suffrage (the right to vote) in England. In fact it was in defense of her daughter, Christabel, that Emily stepped in in the first place. The Women's Political and Social Union was formed at the turn of the century, and grew stronger each year thereafter. Later on the mother-daughter duo went on to found the Women's Party, which (in addition to a strong support for the war against Germany -- WWI, this was) supported: "equal pay for equal work, equal marriage and divorce laws, the same rights over children for both parents, equality of rights and opportunities in public service, and a system of maternity benefits." As the history notes, "Christabel and Emmeline had now completely abandoned their earlier socialist beliefs and advocated policies such as the abolition of the trade unions." So I have that rather nice connection with a real freedom fighter as well, even though we were separated in history by nearly a century. What finally convinced me, though, was finding out that I shared my birthday with the immortal and incredible singer/songwriter/troubadour, Woody Guthrie. The author of "This Land Is Your Land" and so many other hard-edged songs of dissent and social outcry seems a perfect addition to my "roster of forebears" -- and given my love for songwriting, music in general and political activism, it just plain fits! If I can write only one song in my life that has the power of some of his mediocre efforts, and move people the way he did and still does long after he's left the dirtball, I will have accomplished something pretty special. Somehow, with all that, I guess I can stand to share my nativity with a misguided attempt at socialist populism. And who knows, with the changes now going on in France, it might someday come to pass that they actually get the priorities right! After all, the phrase did begin with "liberté" … |
