Ken Burns Address: A Call to Action
I am in the business of history. For 50 years, I’ve rigorously remained neutral, avoiding political advocacy. But now I must speak out. What’s happening now is of ferocious urgency. It is my job to help all of us to understand and fix it.This is especially true in light of the recent Ken Burns Address that highlights the critical nature of our current situation.
The Urgent Choice This November
The choice this November could not be clearer. We must protect and maintain our fragile 249-year-old democratic experiment. Otherwise, we’ll suffer a decline that will engulf and destroy us.
Lessons from Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln asked, “At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? Shall we expect some military giant to crush us?” He answered his own question. “Never. All the armies of Europe, Asia, and Africa could not destroy us. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author.” We need to be aware and diligent or die by suicide.” Lincoln presided over the closest this country has ever come to national suicide — our civil war.
The Importance of Awareness and Innovation
Lincoln reminded us that we’re lucky to inhabit this great country, with its innovation and institutions of higher learning and, perhaps most needed today, our suspicion of power.
But our devotion to money, guns and conspiracies, our certainty about all of it, our stubborn polarization and our preoccupation with always making others wrong has blinded us to what needs repair.
The Perils of Rigid Certainty
As individuals we are rigid. Everything is either right or wrong, red state or blue state, young or old, gay or straight, rich or poor, Palestinian or Israeli, my way or the highway. Everywhere we are trapped, imprisoned and paralyzed by our certainties.The Ken Burns Address warns against this kind of rigid thinking, emphasizing that it obstructs meaningful dialogue and solutions.
James Baldwin’s Insight on Freedom and Slavery
Writer James Baldwin said, “No one was ever born who agreed to be a slave, who accepted it. Slavery is a condition imposed from without. But multitudes of people enslave themselves to this or that doctrine, to this or that delusion, this or that lie. Anti-Semites, for example are slaves to a delusion. People who hate Blacks are slaves. People who love money are slaves. We are living in a universe of willing slaves, which makes our liberties and freedoms most dangerous.The Ken Burns Address reflects Baldwin’s insights by highlighting how societal delusions can endanger our freedoms.
The Warning from Mercy Otis Warren
During the American Revolution, Poet Mercy Otis Warren said, “There’s only us. Whenever someone suggests that there’s a them, run away. Because that’s how to make and brand your enemies, and the surest way to your own self imprisonment. This sentiment is echoed in the Ken Burns Address, which cautions against dividing ourselves into opposing camps that only exacerbate our problems.
The Consequences of Ignoring Conscience
Which brings me to a moment I’ve dreaded and forces me to suspend my longstanding attempt at neutrality. When the checks of conscience are thrown aside, a deformed soul emerges, and we seek the fog of opioids.The Ken Burns Address underscores the danger of ignoring our moral compass and the destructive consequences of such actions.
Donald Trump: A Symbol of National Suicide
Donald Trump is the opioid of all opioids, an easy cure for what some believe is the solution to our of pains, problems and anger. When in fact Trump will re-enslave you with worse dangers and delusions. He will be the finisher of our existence — the cause of our national suicide.The Ken Burns Address identifies Trump as a significant threat to our democratic values and warns of the perilous direction in which he could lead us.
A Message to the Graduating Class
Let me speak directly to this graduating class. Be curious, not adamant. Respect the kinship of the soul that connects all of us all. Leadership humility and generosity squared. The opposite of faith is certainty. Let Ecclesiastes guide you. Ask questions in search of the purpose of life. Do not get stuck in one place. Make babies. You will have to worry about someone other than yourself. It is liberating and exhilarating. The Ken Burns Address delivers this message with urgency, encouraging the next generation to engage thoughtfully with the challenges we face.
Choosing Honor Over Hypocrisy
Choose honor over hypocrisy, virtue over vulgarity, character over cleverness. They have nothing to do with the actual defense of our country; they just make our country worth defending.
Remember what Lincoln understood — that the real threat still comes from within.
The Ken Burns Address reinforces the importance of these values in safeguarding our nation’s integrity.
Here’s my suggested tweet.
For 50 yrs, historian Ken Burns wouldn’t speak out about Trump – until now. He warns: There’s no choice in November except to maintain our democracy. If destruction be our lot, we’ll be its author. But devotion to conspiracies, certainty about everything & the need to make others wrong obscures what needs repair. Everything’s either right or wrong, red or blue, my way or the highway. Put conscience aside & a deformed soul emerges, then we seek the fog of opioids in Trump, who will be the author of our national suicide.
