I Had Heard So Much Negative Talk

To Be Sure, The United States Has Profound Problems, Not Least Our Faltering Educational And Physical Infrastructure.

True Patriots Believe That We Should Measure A Citizen's Worth By Contribution To Country And Community, Not By Wealth Or Power-that Those Whom America Has Benefited Most Should Contribute In Proportion To Their Good Fortune-and That Serving Others Should Be Esteemed More Highly Than Serving Self.

Why Does An Iphone Cost Only A Couple Hundred Dollars? Because, As The Stage Performer Mike Daisey Depicted In An Arresting One-man Show Called 'the Agony And Ecstasy Of Steve Jobs,' Apple's Shiniest Products Are Made By A Shadowy Company In China Called Foxconn.

Here's A Proposal, Offered Only Partly In Jest: No Resident Of The United States, Whether Born Here Or Abroad, Should Get To Be A Citizen Until Age 18, At Which Time Each Such Resident Has To Take A Test.

In The End, A New Americanization Movement Can't Just Be About Listing Our Privileges And Immunities, Which We Catalog In Our Laws. It Also Has To Be About Reinforcing Our Duties, Which We Convey In Our Habits.