"[T]he United States is not “much of the world.” We are a sovereign state, not a nation-state. Unlike, say, Denmark, we have no official language and no state religion. Our identity is oriented toward the future, not the past. We do have birthright citizenship — though that, curiously, is something many of today’s national conservatives want to abolish. Our national borders have changed repeatedly and may change again.America is the country under whose banner the descendants of slaves give military orders to the descendants of slave owners and stand guard alongside the children of immigrants from Greece and Mexico in places like Panmunjom. It’s where the biological son of a Syrian immigrant created our first trillion-dollar company. It’s where Jews celebrate Christmas by going out for Chinese food.All this is the essence of America’s exceptionalism. It does not require open borders, rule by U.N. mandarins, obeisance to progressive pieties or any of the other ostensible predations of “globalism” that conservative nationalism claims to oppose."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Journalists from the United StatesColumnists from the United StatesEditors from the United StatesPeople from New York CityConservatives from the United States
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Imported from EN Wikiquote
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bret_Stephens
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Bret Stephens
11 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Bret Stephens →
Related Quotes
"Syria isn’t so much a country as it is an exhibit for Dictatorship Inc., the main purpose of which is to show that re…"
"Why care about social formalities, modes of dress, niceties of speech, qualities of restraint? Not simply because man…"
"Dictatorships fall not only when they have implacable opponents but also exemplary victims: Steve Biko in South Afric…"
"[N]ationalism does require the mainstream conservative movement to jettison its best principles. Three in particular …"
"Conservatives used to believe in the overwhelming benefits of immigration. Most nationalists want to restrict even le…"
"This is a presidency whose defining feature isn’t ideology, much less policy. It’s neurosis."
"[A] nationalism moderated by liberalism can serve other countries well. When it comes to the United States, however, …"
"There used to be a sign (which, for all I know, is still there) somewhere in the C.I.A.'s headquarters that read, "Ev…"
"What can Oct. 8 Jews do? We can stop being embarrassed, equivocal or defensive about Zionism, which is, after all, on…"
"[T]he American example. Novus ordo seclorum: We are a new order of the ages, not just a copy of the old states of Eur…"