The day after July 4th, want to take the opportunity to express my appreciation for this country.
I was born here. But many in my family were not.
In fact, a whole bunch of my family members had the misfortune of being born Jews in Eastern Europe in the early 20th Century. Most of them didn’t survive.
That some of my antecedents, including my father, made it here explains my existence (and that of my brother and my children).
That this country is generally a safe, open, free place where effort and intelligence are rewarded explains pretty much everything else about my life.
I never, ever take this country for granted and I hope you don’t either.