Elon Musk is an American by blood
His grandfather, Joshua Haldeman (6’6”) and father to Maye Musk, was born in 1902 in Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, and even paid his way through college by competing in rodeos, the most American thing imaginable.
@TheAliceSmith I read the Declaration of Independence out loud today with heartfelt conviction.
It is a work not just of genius, but also of a purity of soul that resonates to this very day.
I love everything about the 4th of July, and the 250th anniversary is especially great for me because I am joining with family and friends for a reading of the Declaration of Independence, a BBQ, and fireworks.
As I reflect on what has happened over the 250 years that followed July 4th, 1776, it seems like an impossible dream come true. Think about it. Imagine that at the outset on July 4th, 1776, you were asked what odds for success a country would have if it would be mostly made up of poor immigrants coming from all different countries with very different cultures and religions and it would be governed by a political system in which the leaders reported to these people who themselves had to vote, compromise, and submit to life-changing decisions that many disagreed with. Would you bet that it would do exceptionally well and improve for 250 years? I would have thought that virtually impossible, yet America has been exceptional for 250 years.
I also see that it was shockingly terrific and lucky for me to have lived through the best part of those 250 years because I was born four years after the 1945 post-World War II beginning of the new American world order, which gave me the best time in history in the best place in the world.
These reflections give me a deep appreciation for the principles and practices—the secret sauce—that created and sustained this remarkable American story, a fear that we are losing sight of them, and a sense of responsibility to contribute to sustaining them.
Patriotism is love for your country’s culture and people. It is defensive.
Nationalism is love for your country’s state. It is power-based.
This is the essence of the distinction Orwell drew between the two terms.
Happy 250th Birthday, America! 🇺🇸🎆
250 years of freedom, courage, and the American dream.
Grateful for every founder, veteran, and hero who made it possible.
Land of the free. Home of the brave. Forever.
God bless the USA! ❤️🤍💙
The Founders didn’t promise happiness, they protected the pursuit of it. No other nation’s founding document made one’s right to chase their dreams a core purpose.
That’s why America has always been the ultimate haven for the world’s most ambitious. Grateful to call it home ❤️🇺🇸