{"id":8082,"date":"2019-03-05T15:54:19","date_gmt":"2019-03-05T15:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=8082"},"modified":"2019-03-20T02:45:00","modified_gmt":"2019-03-20T02:45:00","slug":"didnt-we-try-this-wall-thing-before","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=8082","title":{"rendered":"Didn’t we try this “Wall” thing before?"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

“Memorial to the Victims of the [Berlin] Wall<\/strong>, with\u00a0graffiti<\/a>, 1982….”<\/em><\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

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\"1953There’s been a lot of talk – lately and for the last two years – about Donald Trump’s wall<\/a>.\u00a0 (The “colloquial<\/a> name for a proposed expansion of the fence that makes up the Mexico\u2013United States barrier<\/a> during the presidency of Donald Trump<\/a>.”)<\/em>\u00a0 Which led me to wonder:<\/p>\n

“Isn’t this like ‘deja vu all over again<\/a><\/em><\/strong>?'”<\/p>\n

Which brings us to the Berlin Wall:<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

[The] guarded concrete barrier<\/a> that physically and ideologically divided Berlin<\/a> from 1961 to 1989…\u00a0 [S]tarting on 13 August 1961, the Wall cut off (by land) West Berlin<\/a> from virtually all of surrounding East Germany<\/a> and East Berlin<\/a>…\u00a0 The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, accompanied by a wide area (later known as the “death strip”<\/strong>) \u2026 and other defenses.\u00a0 The Eastern Bloc<\/a> portrayed the Wall as protecting its population from fascist<\/a> elements conspiring to prevent the “will of the people” in building a socialist state<\/a>…<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

East Germany<\/a> also called the Wall its “Anti-Fascist Protection Rampart,” while the West Berlin city government referred to it as the “Wall of Shame<\/a>.”\u00a0 Wikipedia<\/a> also noted that the East German government took the action because of its “brain drain problem.”<\/p>\n

In other words, people who wanted the promise of freedom were kept in virtual prison:<\/p>\n

In the West, the Berlin Wall was regarded as a major symbol of communist oppression.\u00a0 About 5,000 East Germans managed to escape across the Berlin Wall to the West, but the frequency of successful escapes dwindled as the wall was increasingly fortified.\u00a0 Thousands of East Germans were captured during attempted crossings and 191 were killed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

(Berlin Wall built – HISTORY<\/a>.)<\/em> \u00a0\u00a0 Which brings up the question:\u00a0 “Do we really want to be like East Germany?\u00a0 Do we really want to build a ‘major symbol of oppression?'”<\/p>\n

Ronald Reagan<\/a> – for one – said no.\u00a0 He – like most if not all presidents before him – bought into the idea of America as a unique “city upon a hill<\/a>.”\u00a0 That idea in turn is based on what Jesus said in Matthew 5:14<\/a>, “You are the light of the world.\u00a0 You cannot hide a city that has been built upon a mountain.”\u00a0 (From His parable<\/a> of Salt and Light<\/a> in the Sermon on the Mount<\/a>, seen at right.)\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

To give you some background on the American<\/em><\/strong> take on that idea:\u00a0 In 1630, the Puritan “father” John Winthrop<\/a> cited Matthew 5:14<\/a> at the end of his lecture or treatise, “A Model of Christian Charity<\/a>.”\u00a0 That sermon (lecture, or treatise)<\/em> languished in obscurity for over 300 years.\u00a0 That is, until the beginning of the Cold War – which included the building of the Berlin Wall.\u00a0 That’s when “Cold War era historians and political leaders made it relevant to their time, crediting Winthrop’s text as the foundational document of the idea of American exceptionalism<\/a>.”\u00a0 (Which included Thomas Jefferson’s seeing America as the world’s great “Empire of Liberty<\/a>.”)<\/em><\/p>\n

President-Elect John F. Kennedy<\/a> quoted the phrase during an address<\/a> in January 1961:<\/p>\n

We are committing ourselves to tasks of statecraft no less awesome than that of governing the Massachusetts Bay Colony, beset as it was then by terror without and disorder within. History will not judge our endeavors\u2014and a government cannot be selected\u2014merely on the basis of color or creed or even party affiliation.\u00a0 Neither will competence and loyalty and stature, while essential to the utmost, suffice in times such as these.\u00a0 For of those to whom much is given, much is required<\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

(Which itself is from\u00a0Luke 12:48<\/a>.)<\/em>\u00a0 In other words, America is<\/em><\/strong> special, and because it’s special, all Americans have unique and special responsibilities.\u00a0 For one thing, we have a special responsibility not<\/em><\/strong> to be “just like other countries.”\u00a0 We don’t want to build walls, either to keep freedom-seeking people out, or to keep smart people from leaving the country.<\/p>\n

Which is pretty much what Ronald Reagan<\/a> said, over and over again.\u00a0 And this even though, politically, he was the exact opposite of John F. Kennedy.\u00a0 But they both<\/em> <\/strong>agreed on the idea of the United States as a \u201ccity upon a hill<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

For example, in his Election Eve address (November 3, 1980)<\/em>, Reagan<\/a> spoke of his Vision for America<\/a><\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 “I have quoted John Winthrop’s words more than once on the campaign trail.”\u00a0 Reagan added that Americans – at least in 1980 – were still “every bit as committed to that vision of a shining ‘city on a hill'” as the long-ago people who settled this country.<\/p>\n

Finally – in that speech – he said Americans weren’t “white or black, red or yellow;\u00a0 they are not Jews or Christians;\u00a0 conservatives or liberals;\u00a0 or Democrats or Republicans.\u00a0 They are Americans<\/em> <\/strong>awed by what has gone before, proud of what for them is still\u2026 a shining city on a hill.”<\/p>\n

And Reagan repeated the theme yet again in his 1989 Farewell speech to the nation<\/a>:<\/p>\n

I’ve spoken of the shining city all my political life \u2026 a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace;\u00a0 a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity.\u00a0 And if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were<\/strong> open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here<\/span><\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Which – in its way – mirrored just what Jesus said in John 6:37<\/a>:\u00a0 “I will never turn away anyone who comes to me.”\u00a0 So whose side are you on?<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 Hopefully, Jesus and Ronald Reagan…<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

The upper image is courtesy of\u00a0Berlin Wall – Wikipedia<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The “farewell speech” link is to Opinion | Ronald Reagan\u2019s Hopeful Farewell – The New York Times<\/a>, by John Meacham.\u00a0 Dated January 10, 2019, the piece was sub-titled:\u00a0 “His last speech as president was about his faith in America and its people.\u00a0 Our current president could not be more different.”<\/em><\/p>\n

The lower image is courtesy of\u00a0Mr Gorbachev Tear Down This Wall\u00a0– Image Results<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/em>See also\u00a0Tear down this wall! – Wikipedia<\/a><\/em>, which included this from the 1987 speech:\u00a0 “We welcome<\/strong> change and openness;\u00a0 for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace.”\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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“Memorial to the Victims of the [Berlin] Wall, with\u00a0graffiti, 1982….” * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 * There’s been a lot of talk – lately and for the last two years – about Donald Trump’s wall.\u00a0 (The “colloquial name for a proposed expansion of the fence that makes up the Mexico\u2013United States barrier during the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,8,5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8082"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8082"}],"version-history":[{"count":32,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8082\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8185,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8082\/revisions\/8185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}