State of the Union Jingoism: We Are Not Family

Like so many platitudinous politicians seeking to inspire, in his SOTU President Obama characterized the nation as "the American family," and I suppose Americans are a family in one sense -- all 300 million of us are stuck with each other. We surely don't all like each other or wish each other well; some of us assume others of us belong in hell, quite literally; we don't share the same fundamental values or ideals, much less the "common creed" referenced by Obama.

We don't "all believe in the rights enshrined in our Constitution," obviously. We differ vigorously and sometimes viciously over freedom of speech and religion, abortion and gay rights, the rights of criminal (or terror) suspects, property rights and unqualified Second Amendment rights, among others. We regularly sabotage, assault, rob, kill each other, and lock each other up. (Some seven million of us are in prison or on probation or parole.) If we are any sort of family we are a highly dysfunctional one, riddled with domestic abuse.
    
Yes I realize the President was trafficking in metaphor, not intended to be taken literally, but his familiar, familial rhetoric is intended to resonate emotionally. I realize too the futility of railing against such trite and childish sentimentality -- it's like objecting to the now inevitable SOTU anecdotes about ordinary yet exemplary Americans displayed in the gallery -- but I am nostalgic for the Obama who once spoke to us as if were adults (mainly in his speech about race). 

And I fantasize about a time when childish appeals to American exceptionalism are no longer obligatory, when presidential addresses are no longer rife with jingoism, when they no longer rely on illusions, or outright lies, about our allegiance to liberty. If the President were genuinely committed to setting a "moral example ... for all those who yearn for freedom, justice, and dignity," he would not have found favor with Dick Cheney for embracing the Bush/Cheney war on terror. If he were committed to "open government," his Administration would not have invoked the state secrets doctrine to avoid accountability for torture and illegal surveillance. If "American leadership (had) been renewed" and America's standing (had) been restored," the U.N. might not be investigating the arguably torturous treatment of Bradley Manning, who has yet to be convicted of a crime. If the President really believed were were a family, he might show some mercy to all of its members. If he really aspired to lead a morally exemplary country, he might have more regard for justice.