Land of Hope

 

Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story by Wilfred M. McClay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you want to strike a blow at the root of woke culture, then get educated. Literally.

A key pillar in all the Critical Race Theory, Gramsci nonsense that is seeking to undermine our nation is found in revising American history in the popular mind. The 1619 Project, while controversial politically, has effectively persuaded many that America was founded cynically on the power dynamic of slavery. This is basic Marxist history.

The best counter to this is not simply to rage against Marxism and CRT and the left, but to know our true history well, so we’ll spot and dismiss fakes and counterfeits like this when they arise.

Land of Hope is perfectly suited for this task, for yourself or your college or high school student. Here are some features of this text to commend to you:


1. Engaging writing in story form
While the format of Land of Hope is a history textbook, the writing draws you in, and pushes you forward. As every good historian must, he makes history a story.


2. Well-rounded, covering each era evenly
I learned a great deal about the Spanish-American War, the Progressivist Era, and other times that tend to get shorter shrift, to focus on more popular topics like the Civil War or World War II. The author does a great job giving each epoch equal time.


3. No liberal bias
Writing history is tough in hyper-politicized times. As one hyper-attuned to liberal bias in news and culture, I can say decidedly that this text does not succumb to the normal, politically correct perspective that dominates academia. It was so refreshing to read!


4. Also not reactionary
The usual response is to write against that liberal bias. Rush Limbaugh’s (RIP) Rush Revere series is a good example. It doesn’t escape the politicization of the age. This text is even handed, laying out the issues, when there is ongoing disagreement. It is neither a diatribe against liberalism, nor a “rose-colored glasses” look at America, glossing over our faults. The Civil War is the best example here. Land of Hope treats slavery as a real, deep stain on our past, but also as something we sought to overcome. It shows the pros and cons of both North and South in all its proper nuance.


5. Mild conservative tilt
I can’t deny there is a slight bias toward conservative ideals. Land of Hope describes the positive aspects of Calvin Coolidge and Ronald Reagan as no contemporary historian I’ve read.

In short, Land of Hope is a refreshing, bracing, and inspiring look at our nation. I cannot recommend it highly enough as a basic history from its origins to the present.


6. Highlights:

TWO VIEWS OF LEADERSHIP
“[There is a] distinction… between the ethic of moral conviction and the ethic of responsibility, two different ways of thinking about how leaders address moral problems in politics. The ethic of moral conviction… says one must be true to one’s principles and to the right thing, at whatever cost. It has a purity about it that is admirable. The ethic of responsibility takes a different view. It guides moderates (and, as we shall see, Lincoln himself) to the belief that leaders must take responsibility for the totality of effects arising out of their actions…. One can easily do the right thing at the wrong time, in the wrong way, and do an immense amount of damage to good and innocent parties in the process. Such a distinction does not decide the question, but it does clarify it.” 128

WAR, FOR PROGRESSIVES
“Progressive intellectuals and politicians had been very resistant to the war, but once it was under way, they began to warm to it. They believed that war was pulling the nation together, creating a sense of common purpose and national solidarity…. To elicit the same willingness to sacrifice for the whole, and the same disciplined ethos, as military conflict does…. Attempts to cast economic, social, public health, or environmental problems as the moral equivalents of war…. How can a liberal political culture, one grounded ultimately in the free consent of rights-bearing individuals, nevertheless be capable of purposeful public action when circumstances call for it?” – 267-268

STATESMANSHIP
“Truman had the burden, a burden he shouldered honorably and wisely, of shepherding the nation through times of great changes, and many of the results were unwelcome or unsatisfying in the short term. Statesmanship is often like that…” - 359

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