A television is playing in a Birmingham bar. The talking head is shouting politics. Most folks in this joint are below thirty, and aren’t even watching TV. They’re transfixed with the opiate glows of their smartphones.
The bartender looks thirteen. He stares at the television screen and says something under his breath. Something sad.
“This country sucks, man.”
I know he probably doesn’t mean it. He’s just upset. But it stings just the same, and I wish he wouldn’t say such things.
Still, maybe it’s not his fault. I don’t know what his story is, I don’t know what his beliefs are, but perhaps this boy has missed a few uniquely American blessings in his accumulated years of harrowed wisdom.
Maybe if he could see a few wondrous things in this country he’d change his opinion about us.
Perhaps he’s never seen things like big, neon-pink azaleas bright enough to give you trouble breathing. Those don’t suck.
Neither do the Waffle Houses lining the interstates. The shoebox buildings with the canary-yellow tops and the interior globe lights over the faux-wood tables. Nothing sucks about those. I’ve neither had a bad meal at such an establishment, nor bad service. And no matter which season I visit a Waffle House, it is always cold enough inside to hang meat.
The Everglades at sunrise, no sucking there. The Suwannee River definitely doesn’t suck. The fat-bottomed cypress trees, swollen with bayou water. Spanish moss—which, as it turns out, is neither moss, nor Spanish.
My bartender needs to see these things. They would bless his heart.
If you ask me, the boy needs to ride a riverboat on the Mighty Missouri at dusk, watch the shrimp trawlers combing Lake Pontchartrain. Or listen to stories from the roughnecks who raised beef in Ottawa County, Oklahoma. He should meet the roughnecks who farmed the oyster beds of the Apalachicola Bay.
And he needs smoked ribs from Kendall’s Barbecue in Georgiana, Alabama. Food that comes out of that tin shack is worth crying over.
He needs to witness Charleston at sunrise. Yellowstone at sundown. He deserves the right to see the outerbanks of The Old North State.
What the kid needs is county fairs, livestock exhibitions, and children with prize-winning show hogs.
A porterhouse in Kansas City. The Copper Art Museum in Clarkdale, Arizona. A hot-air balloon flight over the Appalachians. A ballgame at Fenway. The little horserace they do each year at Churchill Downs.
String bands, playing beneath festival tents. Gospel music with Hammond organs. Music from the bayou played on button accordions by men with white hair.
Jazz.
The kid needs to hold a butter-yellow Case XX knife in his hand. And he ought to own at least one Stetson to keep the sun out of his eyes. He needs to taste chicken and dumplings prepared by a woman who has raised seven kids without the support of a husband.
He needs to meet the Walmart greeter named Phillip. The hospice chaplain named Marge. The family therapist named Jason. He deserves to meet the truck drivers, the pipefitters, the songwriters, the storytellers, the novelists, the oil painters, the shipbuilders, the dentists, the hair stylists, the brewmasters, and the small-town principals named Barbara.
I wish I could take this kid to a Church of God chapel in Senoia, Georgia. Or perhaps a Catholic Mass in Valentine, Nebraska. Or a synagogue in Yonkers. Or the Green Cove Missionary Baptist Church in Damascus, Virginia. Or the Thai temple in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
I wish I could take him to any church house that backs up to a hayfield. The quintessential American rural congregational house. The kinds of assemblies that pepper this country from Missoula to Uvalde.
And I’d like to carry the kid to an American funeral. Like my grandmother’s service. Wherein a string of a million-and-three cars drove with their headlights on. I’d like the boy to attend an honest-to-goodness repast, and eat the food of grieving people.
I’d like him to receive a hug from an elderly Norwegian woman in Minnesota. I’d like him to taste pierogies in Lancaster County. Chilaquiles verdes in Taos. Crab cakes in Baltimore.
I don’t care what the suits on television say, kid. Don’t believe them. Yes, we have problems in this nation. Yes, we have haters. Yes, we’re a gigantic dysfunctional family fit for an episode of Jerry Springer. Yes, we have division.
But we also have pediatric oncologists, Fort Bragg, national park rangers, historic sod cabins, longleaf forests, Pikes Peak and James Brown. The sandstone arches of Moab. The beach bungalows of O’ahu. The 960,000 acres of remaining American prairieland. We have nurses, EMTs, special-ed teachers, janitors, meat-packers, cab drivers and bartenders. That’s us.
America doesn’t suck.
Your television does.
198 comments
Heidi - June 26, 2022 3:55 am
Amen Sean. Amen.🇺🇸
Micky - June 26, 2022 3:56 am
Love love love this! I needed this reminder
Ronnie Hughes - June 26, 2022 3:58 am
Amen
Joan Busby - June 26, 2022 4:08 am
Right on! And Thank You. Good, thoughtful, and well written.
David S Doom - June 26, 2022 4:13 am
Amen
Kim - June 26, 2022 4:16 am
The Lord be with you, Sean! And God bless America. 🙏❤️🇺🇸
Anne Arthur - June 26, 2022 4:20 am
I am 100% with you.
Katherine - June 26, 2022 4:42 am
This column seems insensitive in light of yesterdays ruling…it wasn’t the “television” that voted to make women lesser humans, it was the Supreme Court. While I can appreciate the fact that there are many other things to praise in this country, it does indeed suck when we are going back in time 50+ yrs and women no longer have the rights they indeed should. I’m all for finding the good, but trust me—it wasn’t the television who just took away my body autonomy.
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 9:56 am
Hi Katherine,
I hope you won’t mind hearing a different perspective… from a guy.
But I have the opinion that the Supreme Court has no business dictating policy to us Americans. We are, or should be, free to make our own decisions about our body. The striking down of Roe vs Wade didn’t change that.
As a woman, you can still make a decision to terminate a new life growing inside you. That is a private and personal decision. The legality of an abortion has simply been restored to each state. Making abortive decisions a local matter. This legality of abortion is no longer decided by the federal government. It’s your state’s and your decision alone as our founding fathers intended.
Unfortunately, the television is packed full of propaganda. Mostly political. The Democrats and liberal news media are lying to you. They are using the recent Supreme Court decision out of context to suit their struggling political agenda. Some of the news channels do not report facts. Which is why I agree so wholeheartedly with Sean’s post today.
We are blessed to have Sean of the South. He doesn’t suck.
Ed
Richard Owen - June 26, 2022 2:07 pm
Thanks, Ed.
N3ØWULF - June 26, 2022 3:52 pm
Ed, as a “guy” you have no business addressing a woman about “your perspective!” You, like so many others, are obviously ignorant on what the real ruling in the original Roe v Wade was about, as abortion just happened to be what was highlighted from it. The actual ruling was in favor that Roe’s 14th Amendment Constitutionally protected right to privacy was what what upheld in that decision. So yeah, the Supreme Court had every right to rule as they did on that case. Maybe next time you and many others on this thread should do some research before making false presumptions based on what those suits on TV told you to think.
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 9:09 pm
Dear N3ØWULF,
The issue may be privacy, but the national argument, obviously, is about abortion.
Since slightly more than half the babies born in the US are male (1.05:1 in 2020), one can assume at least half the babies who die as a result of abortion in this country are male. Given this, WHY should men have no right to voice an opinion about abortion? That argument is as unreasonable as stating that a woman has the right to decide what’s right for “her body” without acknowledging that she’s also making an irreversible decision for another person’s body as well!
Abortion affects us all and returning the decision TO THE PEOPLE – which is precisely what the SCOTUS decision just did – is the right thing to do. The people in each state, as VOTERS, will now decide how they want the matter handled. And don’t forget, at least at this point, we still have the freedom to move across state lines. If a woman lives in a state that denies her the “right” (it isn’t, Constitutionally, by the way) to abort her baby, she can find one that does. Ultimately, there’s always the option to choose caution, or contraception, rape being an exceedingly small percentage of reasons for abortion. (Incest is a tragedy so much larger than any resulting pregnancy that it doesn’t even belong in the discussion.)
Susie - June 26, 2022 4:33 pm
And what news channels are YOU listening to, Ed?! Jeez, talk about listening to propaganda!! Perhaps you should tune into the hearings on Jan 6th!! Almost ALL of the witnesses just HAPPEN to be TRUMP’s TOP PEOPLE!! YOU aren’t even aware of that, I’ll bet!! Past time to quit being an Ostrich Republican….if you don’t watch it, it isn’t happening. Lol
Joe - June 27, 2022 10:37 am
I love it when you clowns always bring up the abortion rights that isn’t in the Bill of Rights, unlike the 2nd Amendment.Just like thosrs hypocrites who say they want to protect children,but then inact gun free zones, that leave children defenseless and spout these nonsense “common sense ” gun control, that’s nowhere has any common sense in it.That’s the reason this country is heading to a 2nd Revolutionary War because there will always be people who’s only purpose in life,is to control every aspect of another person’s life.
N3ØWULF - June 27, 2022 3:51 pm
Joe, I love it when uneducated clowns like you have no idea why Roe v Wade was passed to begin with, nor have the mental capacity to understand how some of the rights you receive as a benefit of that law are now obliterated. Roe v Wade was about more than abortion, it was about a woman’s 14th Amendment right to autonomy and privacy being trampled on by ultra-right-wingers. And now the idiots like you don’t understand what this means for all other Constitutionally protected rights. But know this, I’ll happily exercise my 2A rights to ensure that a woman’s 14A rights are recognized once again. And if that means I’ll be on the other side from you when shit kicks off, just know that many of us on that side have just as many, if not more, firearms as you do.
Ken M. - June 27, 2022 12:17 pm
Question: What do Jan. 6th and Trump have to do with Ed’s original comments? Answer: Nothing. Conclusion: When people have no intellectual basis to honorably debate a divisive subject, they redirect and attempt to create more divisiveness and discord. Stick to the topic and bring real meat to the table (unless you’re a vegan… but then again, that’s another argument).
Nan Mautz - June 27, 2022 12:25 am
Amen, Ed…..there are so many misinformed people out there is is scary.
Murielle Bennett - June 27, 2022 10:15 am
Thank you, Ed, for this reply to Katherine. The Supreme Court is charged with ensuring the American people the promise of equal justice under law and, thereby, also functions as guardian and interpreter of the Constitution. They do not make the laws.
Jerrie Nicholson - June 27, 2022 3:17 pm
Dear Ed,
Respectfully Sir, you have no idea the harm that has been done.
First, you’re a man, so your perspective is different.
Apparently, you have the means to travel as you wish, funds are not an issue.
You are not a child who has been raped, and continues to be, maybe by a stepfather, and uncle, a father.
You’re not pregnant by a man you are afraid of.
You’re not carrying a non-viable fetus or a dead fetus.
You’re not suffering an ectopic pregnancy.
You’re parents have not put you on the street because you’re 15 and pregnant.
You’re not pregnant again while worrying how to provide for those you already have.
I suspect you are white, educated, own your home, have a bank account, own and car, have well paying employment.
Respectfully, you are just wrong, you DEAD wrong as will be many women after the arrogant SCOTUS decision.
You pontificate.
I weep.
Jerrie Nicholson
Born in 1939
Emily S - June 28, 2022 1:15 pm
That was eloquently put Jerrie… thank you
Jo - June 26, 2022 11:45 am
Your rights were not taken away, dear. It’s now in the hands of the states not the federal government.
Richard Owen - June 26, 2022 2:05 pm
You still have the right to an abortion in this country, just pick the state you want to go to that allows it. New York, for example, allows all sorts of late term abortions. Just thank your mother for NOT considering an abortion while she was pregnant with you. I do not, like Sean says, “know your full story” but don’t deride this country that allows more freedoms about abortion than most of the free world. What countries is America more aligned with on abortion rights? China and North Korea.
I got my wife pregnant out of wedlock back in 1968 though we were engaged at the time. In October, we will celebrate our 54th wedding anniversary.
AND I AGREE WITH SEAN’S LAST TWO SENTENCES!
Susie Flick - June 26, 2022 4:24 pm
Agree 100%
Susie - June 26, 2022 4:25 pm
Amen, Katherine!! It is indeed a sad day for NOT ONLY women, but families as well. This will affect how well a family is able to fare. And what a totally HORRIBLE time to be putting this STRAIN and STRESS on families. As though life isn’t already so hard right now!? I am so beyond angry and sad for this country.
Liz Bidhop - June 26, 2022 8:36 pm
And what rights does an unborn child have over its body autonomy? There are so many other ways to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. So sad that some think abortion of a life is the only solution.
Liz Bishop - June 26, 2022 8:39 pm
And what rights does an unborn child have over its body autonomy? There are many, many ways to prevent an unwanted pregnancy. It’s so very sad that so many think abortion is the only solution.
N3ØWULF - June 28, 2022 5:09 am
Liz Bishop… NONE!!! Because it is unborn an incapable of sustaining it’s own life! However, since you and so many others are “pro-life”, what are you doing to help the 500k kids currently in Foster Care? What are you doing to help the single struggling mothers to provide the necessary care for those children they can’t truly afford to care for? NOTHING!!! And you know why? Because you’re not really pro-life, you’re just anti-abortion because of your outdated and debunked religious beliefs in a gay god and gay savior!
Larry - June 28, 2022 6:46 pm
N30WULF – Your rants indicate that you just may be the result of a bungled abortion. Go put some more of that purple and pink dye in your hair and get 2 or 3 more tattoos and piercings. You likely would know a lot more about those things than you do the Supreme Court’s rulings.
N3ØWULF - June 28, 2022 10:59 pm
Larry, nice of you to make ignorant assumptions about me, but I’m not the guy you want to fuck with. Enjoy the fact that you have a keyboard to hide behind!
Linda Everett - June 27, 2022 1:39 am
Katherine, you need to read the brief. Abortion is still very much available, SCOTUS simply put the abortion decision back to the states. Back to the people who vote in their own state. I, personally, would never abort my baby, I love all three of my children and they have given my husband and I much joy and love in our lives.
Only my opinion, but there are plenty of contraceptives available at affordable prices. Women and their partners, need to use this option to prevent an unwanted pregnancy.
Katherine - June 27, 2022 3:40 am
Except that multiple states have trigger laws in which they have or will ban abortions with NO vote. I personally would never abort my baby either—I’m pro-life for myself, but I don’t begin to assume I have the right to make that choice for anyone else. I also think there are sooo many other circumstances that lead to the medications and treatments used in “abortions”—rape, incest, ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, the list goes on. These laws put so many women at risk. Also—people that say they are pro-life are typically pro-birth, not pro-life; there is a big difference. What are you doing to assist the 500,000 children in foster care? What are you doing to help mothers struggling to feed their children? I won’t begin to think that I’m going to change anyones mind on this page and you have every right to your opinion. I hope to help you see a different perspective, respectfully.
Katrina Butler - June 27, 2022 3:54 am
Katherine you hit the main on the head! Thank. That is exactly what w think too.
Amelia - June 27, 2022 9:22 am
Thank you Katherine.
DONNA FISHER - June 27, 2022 4:20 pm
Ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and other threat-to-life conditions are not considered abortions, and no state will ban them. And abortions for rape and incest are less than 1/10 of 1 percent. Birth control has advanced exponentially in the last 50 years, so abortion should return to it’s initial promise of being “safe, legal, and rare.”
Lulu - June 26, 2022 4:45 am
Thank you Sean…thank you, thank you! God Bless America!
Irma Brown - June 26, 2022 5:01 am
No , Our Country does not suck. You are so right. It makes me sad that so many people do not see all the good that is about our Country. From Sea to Shinning Sea. God Bless America.
Michelle - June 26, 2022 5:12 am
I sure needed this today! Thank you! I so enjoy your writings!
Terry J. Perkins - June 26, 2022 6:13 am
Absolutely love this, Sean! Love all your writing, but this one touched me deeply – a heartfelt reminder of what our America truly is, day to day, week to week, year to year. We’ll done!!!
Terry J. Perkins - June 26, 2022 6:15 am
Well done, that is!!!
Steve McCaleb - June 26, 2022 6:38 am
Sean, I agree wholeheartedly that the things you list are truly wonderful but none of them will put food on your table or gas in your car. We’re being told to buy electric vehicles by the same people who are telling us that rolling electrical brownouts are about to be implemented. Make sure you get the free bicycle with your electric car purchase, you’re going to need it. People are hurting across this great country and nobody in a position to help seem to give a flying ….ugh hoot. And this is all self-inflicted. God help us through this friendly fire induced crap storm. This country most assuredly DOES NOT SUCK…..but the opressive conditions under which we all are trying to make it another day most certainly DOES!
Te - June 26, 2022 10:05 am
And those conditions will not last because We the People are the nation, not those idiots who cause the current suckiness. We’re stronger than we think, and there’s more of us than of “them.” Hang in there, citizen. We’ll get through this.
Sandi. - June 26, 2022 6:52 am
Well said, Sean. Very well said. There is so much more good in America than there is not so good. It’s a matter of perspective. Some folks see the hole in a doughnut instead of the doughnut.
Carol Wheeler - June 26, 2022 7:05 am
Nailed it again…..turn off our cellphones and TVs.
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 9:22 am
Amen!
I love you brother!
Timothy Smith - June 26, 2022 9:53 am
Really?? What until your marriage is threatened. Wait until the Supreme Court makes you a second class citizen by taking away your right to do with your own body as you please and love the person that is your heart and soul. You are trying to distract us with imagery of a Norman Rockwell America that ignores the brutal reality of bigotry, racism, and evil coming out of not only the Supreme Court…but half of all Americans today. Pretty poetic words do not cover up the horrible place we are in America. For many of us, our very way of life is now on the chopping block…and we are TERRIFIED!
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 11:30 am
Hi Timothy,
I hope you won’t mind hearing a different perspective… from a Sean of the South fan.
But I have the opinion that the Supreme Court has no business dictating policy to us Americans. We are, or should be, free to make our own decisions about our body. The striking down of Roe vs Wade didn’t change that.
Everyone can still make a decision to terminate a new life growing inside a mother. That is a private and personal decision. The legality of an abortion has simply been restored to each state. Making abortive decisions a local voting matter. This legality of abortion is no longer decided by the federal government. It’s your state’s and your decision alone as our founding fathers intended.
Unfortunately, the television is packed full of propaganda. Mostly political. Personally, I am very concerned for the folks like yourself that are frightened into despair because of misinformation in the media. The Democrats and liberal news stations are lying to you. They are using the recent Supreme Court decision out of context to suit their struggling political agenda. Many news channels do not report the truth. Which is why I agree so wholeheartedly with Sean’s post today.
We are blessed to have Sean of the South. He doesn’t suck. Lies suck because they hurt people.
Susie Flick - June 26, 2022 4:23 pm
Lying? What about the last president who lied about most everything and doesn’t even care about his family?
Please leave your politics at home in front of fox fake “news”.
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 10:17 pm
Sear Suzie,
Hate is a killer. And it is killing our beloved Republic; a nation beloved, at least, by those who call ourselves patriots. It’s hard to tell what our politicians, CNN & the “Ladies” of the View feel. Consider the four years of President Trump’s tenure compared to what is occurring under Biden’s “leader”ship. Under Trump – the man CNN has instructed you that you must hate – the economy was thriving, people (of ALL ethnicities, colors, beliefs and sexual persuasions) were employed at a high rate, our military was strong, the country was energy independent, gas prices, interest rates, taxes and inflation were at historic lows. But we were beginning to suffer from the insidious lies of the Left and the Progressive-controlled media. Cancel Culture, “doxing”, BLM (a Marxist-owned-&–run organization, did you know that?), & Antifa (actually just “FA”) were rioting without check, Hilary’s Russia hoax, the subversion of the FBI, phony “impeachments” held in locked basement rooms. And now, under Biden, we have this: America begging its enemies for oil, empty grocery shelves, a military focused on pronouns (& pregnancy gear), children attending trollop shows, being taught to hate each other because of their color, & parents being put on “Domestic Terrorist” Watch Lists for objecting to what’s going on in our schools! Lying? “FOX fake ‘news’”? Fox is the only place where you’ll here both sides! I’m an unapologetic Conservative but they have enough Liberals on FoxNews that I spend half my time shouting back at the TV! Try it; you might learn something! Right now you’re being fed only what “THEY” want you to believe; you’re a pawn.
(And yours was a pretty “political” post, by the way).
Timothy Smith - June 27, 2022 10:46 pm
What does that have to do with most of the issues I pointed out? Abortion is the tip of an iceberg that could end up taking away the rights of far too many marginalized people in this country. As for your little speech about abortion…why do you keep repeating the same thing over and over. We get it…and frankly don’t care about your biased opinion.
Richard Owen - June 26, 2022 2:18 pm
Just realize you are in the minority here, Mr. Smith. At least, I ASSUME you IDENTIFY as a male. How come transgenders always identify as male or female, man or woman while enduring their gender dysphoria?
You don’t like here? Immigrate to someplace else like Iran, Afghanistan, or Saudia Arabia.
Timothy Smith - June 27, 2022 10:55 pm
I happen to be a man…married to another man! Don’t like it…get over it! I served in two branches of the military and worked my way through college. I have a beautiful home and great family. I am living the “American Dream”…but I am
not blind…and your assumptions are absurd!
Susie - June 26, 2022 4:43 pm
Me, too, Timothy. And this is ONLY the beginning of the far right agenda! Even tho they lie and say it’s not! People think things are bad right NOW! Ha! They have no idea what losing freedoms are like…..yet, keep voting the far right in,,,then you’ll really see what losing freedoms are like.
Linda - June 26, 2022 10:10 am
On point. So many times what is being said on television is the direct opposite of reality.
Te - June 26, 2022 10:26 am
Well said and you included almost everything! But that list is miles long. July 4th fireworks and concerts on the Esplanade by the Charles River come to mind, and pot luck socials at Empire Pentecostal Church although I knew exactly 2 people, neither of which ever spoke in tongues. My own list — all our lists — are miles long. Turned off the tv, cancelled the satellite sub, and stopped allowing the hatefulness of misguided fools to disturb my peace. Water my flowers, fuss at the dogs for getting into the cat litter, and dote on a kitten named Surprise. Grow tomatoes and watch the sun set. Life is good, and I am blessed to be one of We the People in the greatest nation on earth.
Ann Thompson - June 26, 2022 10:31 am
So right. And I’ll add a moon bow at Yosemite, sweet corn in August picked while the water is boiling, and the vote!
Have you watched the documentary on Mr. Rogers on Netflix? His insight into TV should be heard and spread.
Tina - June 26, 2022 10:36 am
Love this, Sean. Thank you.
Helen De Prima - June 26, 2022 10:44 am
Amen, brother!
Michael M Mack - June 26, 2022 10:58 am
Exactly!
E - June 26, 2022 11:03 am
Not this time. That “boy” is right. Americans suck. The USA sucks. The religious beliefs of six people now dictate what happens in my family, my life and/or death, my marriage, my very bed. It’s perfectly fine to martyr my two elementary age children to the AR-15 gods. It is not okay for me to have a procedure to keep me alive to raise them should the unthinkable happen. Women are no longer considered humans capable of making their own decisions. This surburban SAHM mom agrees with the “boy”. America sucks.
Lander - June 26, 2022 11:24 am
E, it’s a disturbing development. And the contradictions you point out, the very contrariness of the Supreme Court to make these decisions because arms were mentioned in the 1700s and abortion was not – aside from the fact that women were in effect not included in that document, is actually not the last word. It may seem like it at the moment. And there may be more bleak times or decisions ahead. But they too will not be the last word, not if we are committed to the longer process of making this a more perfect Union. There are things we must do to put us back on the track of a better balance between our freedoms to choose and the necessities of reasonable safety. Maybe one of the things can help temporarily is to look up at the beauty around us and remember even if these six people changed the law of the land for now, our conversation is a longer one, and those are not the last words. Beauty and hope are still before us to behold.
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 11:47 am
Dear Lander and E,
I hope you won’t mind hearing a different perspective… from a Sean fan. Your comments are out of comment bounds here in Sean’s post.
But in response to your complaint, I have the opinion that the Supreme Court has no business dictating policy to us Americans. We are, or should be, free to make our own decisions about our body. And the striking down of Roe vs Wade didn’t change that.
Anyone can still make a decision to terminate a new life growing inside a mother. That is a private and personal decision. The legality of an abortion has simply been restored to each state. Making abortive decisions a local matter. This legality of abortion is no longer decided by the federal government. It’s your state’s and your decision alone as our founding fathers intended when they wrote our constitution.
Unfortunately, the television is packed full of propaganda. Mostly political. Personally, I am very concerned for the folks like yourself that are frightened into despair because of misinformation in the media. The Democrats and liberal news stations are lying to you. They are using the recent Supreme Court decision out of context to suit their struggling political agenda. Some of the news channels do not report facts. Which is why I agree so wholeheartedly with Sean’s post today.
We are blessed to have Sean of the South. He doesn’t suck. Lies suck because they hurt people.
Katherine - June 26, 2022 2:00 pm
I know you posted this on my comment as well as many others, but it’s simply not true. It is NOT a lot of women’s private and personal decision anymore, as many states have already or are on their way to enacting trigger laws that prevent this very thing. And it’s not just the typical “abortion” we are talking about, as the treatments and medications used for abortions are also used for ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages. It might be easy for you to say “it doesn’t affect you, go on living your life” because indeed, you are a man and it surely doesn’t affect you. But it certainly affects me and millions of other women, regardless of what tv and media says. I actually rarely watch tv and news. It’s one of the reasons I subscribe to Sean’s column, because I love his perspective! But this one was ill-timed and missed the mark.
Also—one of the judges clearly and concisely threatened same sex couples/marriages, contraception, etc. Again, that’s not media…that’s actual life for a lot of people. Maybe it doesn’t pertain to you or your life, but it’s certainly a reason to be angry and fearful for many others. Please don’t say it doesn’t affect someone when it most certainly does.
Susie - June 26, 2022 4:51 pm
well put, Katherine. I don’t understand how a man can even think their opinion matters in this. “His “HIS opinion doesn’t matter. HERS does.”
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 10:03 pm
Hi Katherine and Susie,
You didn’t address me, but I assume your replies are directed to Ed (Bear), which is me.
My intention was to try to steer people away from “other than commenting on Sean’s post” comments like your vents and try and rest the fear that folks like you are feeling about your right to end a new life growing inside someone such as yourselves. I did not lie in my replies as you seem to think. Your comments are hurtful. I understand that you see your right to terminating a pregnancy being reduced from nationally legal to state by state legal. I can see how that is viewed as a setback. But can you look at it from the Supreme Court’s position? They are charged with upholding the Constitution. They are not charged with making laws. The constitution protects everyone’s rights, including yours to protest. The Roe vs Wade Supreme Court ruling did not follow the Constitution’s guarantee of inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for everyone. Life begins at gestation. For me that’s a no brainer. I applaud the Justices for correcting a wrong.
I disagree with you that I should have had no say in my wife’s two pregnancies. Of course I had to have her permission first. If she had said no, I would have honored her right as an individual to not bear children. Children can be bears. So can adults.
Soapbox time… Too many people want to lash out and blame others instead of accepting responsibility for their own actions. Abortion should always be legal for life threatening situations and victims of violence. But I don’t agree that anyone has the right to end an easily preventable life. What justifies taking a life that depends on you. Babies at gestation are already a new growing into, and too soon becoming, an independent person who would likely prefer foster parents to death. There’s a waiting list of wannabe parents that can’t conceive and will pay handsomely for a little bear of their own.
Most problems have solutions. Sometimes we need to be patient, slow to speak, quick to listen and slow to become angry.
Ed
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 10:19 pm
Keep on posting, Bear, and speaking truth to ….those who will not hear or understand.
Bless you!
Corky
Denise Walker - June 26, 2022 11:06 am
So many Americans needs to read these words. No matter how sucky things gets, there are still lots of things to celebrate. Thank you for reminding me of all the things that are good. Keep up the good work, Sean. You rock!
Kathy - June 26, 2022 11:09 am
Yes, but…I also agree wholeheartedly with James Baldwin:
“I love America more than any country in the world. It is exactly for this reason that I insist upon the right to criticize her perpetually.”
Dolores Parkinson - June 26, 2022 11:11 am
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
The media is none of these things.
The spiritual, physical and mental health of our nation would improve dramatically if we ‘canceled’ television and social media (except for a very few select things). And in turn, go out and be the love you’re seeking; be the change you wish to see. It doesn’t take deep pockets and doesn’t strive for notoriety.
We’ve become exactly what the media feeds us: a nation of gripers. Gratitude and mindfulness are the beginning of kindness: that’s what gets the ball rolling. Be like Sean.
Sheilla Boyd - June 26, 2022 11:27 am
agree 100%
Richard Davis - June 26, 2022 11:34 am
Well said👍👍🥸
niobrarariverrat - June 26, 2022 11:38 am
Not sure how Valentine, Nebraska crept into your post, but thanks. Valentine lies along the Niobrara River, thus my niobrarariverrat handle. Thanks for trying to keep the positive in this country. It’s hard not to sometimes agree with the bartender that it, at least temporarily, sucks.
susiemac - June 26, 2022 11:40 am
Normally, I love your writing and am moved by it. But this one dismayed, and yes, angered me. It was jingoistic pablum. There are azaleas and sunsets and great food and good people in lots of places, nothing American about them. This country is HURTING and has been hijacked by a loony fringe trying to impose ultra-conservative religious beliefs on all of us. Our SCOTUS is off the rails, and we all know how and why that happened. I remember the Before Time, and grew up on stories of women dying from botched backroom abortions. I and my daughter and my granddaughter have just been relegated to second-class citizens, and I am ANGRY. I’m sorry but right now, this country DOES suck.
Susie Flick - June 26, 2022 4:26 pm
Agree 100%
Amy - June 26, 2022 11:44 am
Yes! Let’s focus on the good!
stephenpe - June 26, 2022 11:58 am
And we have you, Sean.
Dottie Doherty - June 26, 2022 12:00 pm
Thank you. I hear my daughter say that all the time and it really hurts. I read her your article this morning. Don’t stop writing about what is good. We need that on a sea of anger
Susie - June 26, 2022 4:55 pm
Dottie, your daughter is right. Sorry. You SHOULD be devasted to see this freedom taken away from her! Educate yourself.
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 10:24 pm
Susie,
With all due respect, you should, perhaps, take your own advice.
Ken - June 26, 2022 12:01 pm
Amen, amen
Romney Ramsey Velazquez - June 26, 2022 12:07 pm
Amen, brother!
Marilyn - June 26, 2022 12:08 pm
We are what we spend most of our our time thinking about. Thinking positive makes sense. The news can poison one’s mind, so be very cautious about what you read and listen to.
Thank you, Sean, for your positive outlook on life.
..
Richard Owen - June 26, 2022 2:30 pm
One of the main reasons I quit listening to the news, Marilyn. My wife and I only watch the weather these days and even they are out there.
Lana - June 26, 2022 12:18 pm
So true and great way of pointing it out. Thanks
BEX - June 26, 2022 12:22 pm
Amen! God bless!
Trish Kupiec - June 26, 2022 12:25 pm
Thank you!
Patty Vincent - June 26, 2022 12:27 pm
Beautiful. Thanks for the reminder we all need right now.
Gordon - June 26, 2022 12:29 pm
Well stated, Sean! Perfect!!! Your last two lines were “spot on”!
JonDragonfly - June 26, 2022 12:34 pm
That boy needs to see the wonders of Yellowstone, visit the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington, sit on a Gulf Coast beach at sunrise (or sunset or any time), and he needs to give a hug to a kid we call Eleven.
Paul McCutchen - June 26, 2022 12:52 pm
Thanks Sean, My wife and I go camping and only answer the phone when it is family. I find myself taking more and more time packing up and coming home. For a brief few days we sit, talk, read books, go hiking or what ever just to decompress and we are retired. I can’t imagine what kids are forced fed on TV or social media.
Richard Owen - June 26, 2022 2:36 pm
Another pair of retirees here, Paul, but we cruise as much as we can. I get frustrated sometimes when watching a couple come in to our local coffee shop, order, seat at a table and instantly are on their phones. I even see it with folks that are cruising.
Gayle - June 26, 2022 1:11 pm
Amen and Amen Sean. And I think you should carry the talking heads along with you and this young man. I ❤️ America. Land of the free, home of the brave. God bless us all, including the talking heads.
Bain Jennifer - June 26, 2022 1:11 pm
What a wonderful post. God Bless America!
David Britnell - June 26, 2022 1:22 pm
I totally agree. I love my country even as messed up as it is.
Dale Parsons - June 26, 2022 1:22 pm
Amen.
Joyce Walden - June 26, 2022 1:22 pm
I Heart America too, at least the old America!! Thank you for your wonderful articles of honesty!!
Fleming Straughan - June 26, 2022 1:33 pm
Thank You
GodBless
Trish Edinboro - June 26, 2022 1:40 pm
All of this is true. America has beauty we can’t ignore But I think Sean you are missing the very real fear, sadness, and legitimate anger over this current backslide in America that means losing autonomy over a women’s body. You are so good at putting yourself in others shoes. I appreciate your heart and mind but please reach deeper and understand this is not a look on the bright side of life moment when half the American population is being told their life doesn’t matter. And it is about life and love. We could debate abortion but it’s really about loving people and supporting them in difficult life decisions. It’s hard as a women to see the lack of respect for our collective female wisdom and right to choose coupled with America continued lack of support for unsolicited or unsupportable pregnancy. We could use a man’s voice like you to validate the position we women now find ourselves. Trust us we understand what’s good about America but it’s insulting and hurtful to have that pointed out when we are in a desperate situation caught in an ugly American moment.
John - June 26, 2022 1:42 pm
Amen
Billy Moore - June 26, 2022 1:47 pm
Thank you, Sean. Beautifully said. We all need to remember these things you cite. If we would get away from the electronics, open our eyes and talk to each other, we would be better off.
Patsy - June 26, 2022 1:47 pm
Wow! I sure needed this today! How selfish we are to focus on all the negativity and fail to see all the positive things our great country has to offer. We truly are blessed to live in America the beautiful. Thank you for reminding us❤️
PATRICK M PLOURDE - June 26, 2022 1:58 pm
One of your best Sean!! We need to be aware of the blessings that we rather focus on trash that people think!!
Beachdreamer - June 26, 2022 2:02 pm
I could write a few paragraphs about this one, and the comments! We do have freedom of speech thank God. But the right speech doesn’t always get to those who need it desperately. I hear the anger in some of the comments….but soo agree with Ed (Bear) and many others who added things to your list..especially the one who added you, Sean. Thank you for these words…thank you! How can we get these to the news media ? I know, that’s not possible…but, we can each one apply them in our lives. What a difference! Love the scripture Delores posted. “As a man thinketh, so is he.” Thank you Sean for all these reminders. We need more Seans in this world. God bless you ❤️🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Beryl - June 26, 2022 2:06 pm
You’ve got to get up every mornin’
With a smile on your face
And show the world
All the love in your heart
Then people gonna treat you better
you’re gonna find, yes you will
That you’re beautiful, as you feel – Carole King. THANK YOU SEAN AND CAROLE
Gacons - June 26, 2022 2:08 pm
In my Sunday School class this morning we were reminded that sin (mistakes if you will) originated with Adam and Eve. The first thing they did was blame someone else! Adam blamed God and Eve, and Eve blamed the snake. Neither blamed their own actions.
As a retired pharmacist I know there are dozens of methods to prevent unwanted pregnancies. You had the opportunity to prevent pregnancy. You are not the victim. You did have a choice and you did control your body, but you choose poorly.
Joann Thompson - June 27, 2022 4:27 am
Birth control is not perfect. Women get pregnant due to rape, so do little girls. Not all pregnancies can be carried to term, yet the men who made these decisions will never have to worry about any of these things happening to them. Your statement was insensitive at best, and ignorant at worst.
Grace - June 26, 2022 2:27 pm
AMEN!!
Cathy M - June 26, 2022 2:37 pm
I will never give up on our country, never. Yes we have many issues that are troubling but I choose to focus on the good. Just as God never gives up on us, we cannot let that happen with our love of this country. Come to B’ham and look for the green bows on mailboxes that are in memory of the three people who died at St. Stephens Episcopal church and in support of their families and all who were traumatized last week. Thank you Sean. What the world needs CNN now is live, sweet love. That’s the only thing that there’s just too little of💙🙏🏻
Cathy M - June 26, 2022 2:41 pm
Not CNN. Typo due to fat fingers. Pls. Excuse
N3ØWULF - June 26, 2022 2:54 pm
Let me start out by saying everything starts from perception and vantage point. While the country as a whole can be beautiful, having beautiful things and people within it, I believe the kid that said “this country sucks” was referring to the government that runs it… And yes, it absolutely sucks! Ignoring those “suits on TV” and the problems we are currently facing as a result of their old, white, privileged, and outdated beliefs that they make laws based on is not going to make those problems go away. You can live inside your fantasy bubble all you want, and normally I like your optimism, but making comments about grandmothers, mothers, and women while simultaneously ignoring that their 14th Amendment rights to autonomy and privacy have been stripped away makes people like you part of the problem, not the solution. I bet you didn’t know that the main basis for the original Supreme Court ruling “Roe vs Wade” decision was not simply about abortion, but it was based on a woman’s 14th Amendment Constitutionally recognized right to privacy, did you? The latest Supreme Court decision has set women’s rights back decades! And for what? Some ultra right-wingers outdated and ignorant religious beliefs! Because Christian men don’t believe women are truly equal to them and should be nothing more than sub-servant slaves to have their children. I would suggest reading the ‘Treaty of Tripoli’, where it clearly states that the US is not a Christian nation, nor was it founded to be. And the 1st Amendment is the 1st because it addresses that very fact, that the US is supposed to be a country that allows for freedom of religious beliefs, all forms of it and not just all forms of Christianity. I know you’ve mentioned that you’ve never had kids, and that’s probably a good thing, because you’ll never have to worry about your daughter getting raped, and getting pregnant as a result, and then having to be forced to carry that pregnancy to full term while it constantly reminds her of the torment she endured that got her pregnant to begin with. You can choose to ignore politics all you want, but politics aren’t going to ignore you and the others in this country that they deprive of their rights. Just remember, once you’ve allowed them to strip away one of your Constitutionally recognized rights, it’s only a matter of time before they come for the rest of them. So yeah, this country does SUCK!
Susie - June 26, 2022 5:08 pm
Yes, N3OWOLF, this country sucks right now. Too many people still believing the BIG LIE. Their obviously not watching the January 6 hearings. I think there are so many ostrich Republicans out there that believe if you don’t watch it it’s not happening lol give me a break talk about ignorance! I’m afraid a lot of these Republicans don’t even realize that most of the witnesses in this January 6 hearings are and happened to be trumps top men. But then they don’t know that if they’re not watching. talk about ostriches with their heads in the sand!
Susie - June 26, 2022 5:21 pm
This country has become such a fat lazy bubble gum nation. Just look at our TV shows, movies some of the books. Such a schlock culture we have. Is it any wonder that we have a television show are you smarter than a second grader and a president who wasn’t?!?! I’m just glad we have a president now that has brought back dignity to the office. And if you’re blaming him for gas prices, perhaps you need to educate yourself. He doesn’t set the prices, is the gas companies do. Many of you obviously are not paying attention to quality news programs try PBS you won’t find a better programming situation. And they don’t yell at each other can you imagine!?
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 10:31 pm
GEEEEZ!
Larry - June 28, 2022 7:56 pm
Well, Suzie, you have just proven a couple of things. 1) That you are first and foremost a card-carrying Bungling Biden democrat; 2) That you have absolutely NO knowledge about macro-economics; and 3) You totally missed the entire point of Sean’s piece today. Oh, and I couldn’t imagine why you would be going to a druid to back up your points.
Patricia Gibson - June 26, 2022 3:08 pm
A thousand amens!!!
Tim House - June 26, 2022 3:09 pm
Beautifully said!
Nancy from Notasulga - June 26, 2022 3:33 pm
Amen, and he should shop at Carmacks grocery in Notasulga, Alabama!
Donna Barger - June 26, 2022 3:39 pm
I love this! He needs to see the Outer Banks of North Carolina and the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains from Blowing Rock, NC! Come visit Hickory, NC sometime.
c lyn burnette - June 26, 2022 3:52 pm
Amen. Brother!
Jim Thomssen - June 26, 2022 3:56 pm
Well said. “When I find myself in times of trouble, mother Mary comes to me , speaking words of wisdom, turn off the TV…”
I think that was what the Beatles said…..
beachdreamer - June 26, 2022 4:16 pm
N30Wulf….not going to use this as a platform to vent as many have, just want to say…did you not hear that those womens rights that everyone is having a fit about have been delegated to the states! You vote to make changes! Now they’ll get the right to speak thru their vote! That’s democracy, which it seems everyone has a different definition of. That’s all I’m saying. Please don’t bash Sean and his column which brings such joy and encouragement to so many. As my grandmother used to say “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all !” Again, God bless you Sean. Keep writing. 👏👏👏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸❤️ I Heart America too!!
N3ØWULF - June 26, 2022 9:46 pm
beachdreamer, that’s not how it’s going to work and you’re obviously missing the big picture that the SCOTUS just stripped away a Constitutionally protected right from women. The 14th Amendment is what the original Roe v Wade SCOTUS decision was made upon, that women have the same equal right to autonomy and privacy that men do. And now that they’ve managed to strip away a Constitutionally protected right, not just from women but EVERYONE in their decision, it’s only a matter of time before other Constitutionally protected rights are stripped away.
Joyce Hooper - June 26, 2022 4:36 pm
Amen! I am 72 years old and I am here to tell you that this country is amazing! It hurts my heart to hear others say mean things about America. Perhaps it is their frustration with politics in Washington that drives such criticism! This is, “America, the Beautiful”!
Carol Pilmer - June 26, 2022 4:36 pm
This is most certainly true! Thanks for the reminder!
Barbara Parker - June 26, 2022 4:40 pm
Where can I find a schedule of your speaking engagements?
Brien Crothers - June 26, 2022 4:43 pm
Absolutely! This nation’s issues are solved by hitting the TV off button.
Jon Whiting - June 26, 2022 4:44 pm
Well said!
Harriet White - June 26, 2022 4:46 pm
Perfect timing for me Sean. Also add St Augustine Fla to the list the kid needs to see. And Sea Turtle flipper prints in the sand dragging itself to build a nest.
Bill E. - June 26, 2022 5:02 pm
Sean, you’re so right.America doesn’t suck, but television does.There is so much garbage on the tube I don’t know where to start. You don’t know if what you see/hear is factual any longer. Maybe it’s time to turn it off and read a good book or just strike up a conversation with someone. I don’t have the answer, I’m watching less tv these days.
Eric webb - June 26, 2022 5:11 pm
“America doesn’t suck.
Your television does.”
How true a statement that is, my television stays on Church TV. Weather Channel, or something on the Science Channel. Being positive or negative is a mindset that unfortunately too many people choose the latter.
I wonder if the bartender ever had home made ice cream or apple pie from the desert table at the family reunion.
Susie - June 26, 2022 5:27 pm
Eric, of course he has. Don’t be so righteous. Love how people who don’t pay attention to what’s actually happening in this country act so righteous. It quess it’s easier than having to think.
Kathy Compton - June 26, 2022 5:22 pm
Awesome. We have so much to be thankful for!
dad - June 26, 2022 6:09 pm
AMEN!
Tink - June 26, 2022 7:19 pm
You are absolutely right Sean.
Steve McCaleb - June 26, 2022 7:36 pm
Absolutely love all these beautiful images of the Grand Canyon, sunsets, beautiful flowers etc the respondents to today’s post have blessed us with. Instead of writing to Sean you might want go down to your local gas station and show pictures of these natural wonders to people who have to choose between feeding their kids and having enough gas to get back and forth to work all week. Jeeze, is there anybody left out there in the REAL world ? You can’t eat the Grand Canyon, the guy at the Chevron ain’t gonna give 20 gallons on Pump#6 in exchange for pics of your Aunt Lucy’s Marigolds. Lordy, no wonder we’re in the shape we’re in. A good portion of our population is wandering around the outer reaches of LaLa Land! Maybe if we all whistle a happy tune ! Yeah that’s it!!!
MAM - June 26, 2022 7:54 pm
No final better words were ever spoken! AMEN, brother Sean. It’s why we don’t have A TV! And I could easily visualize every one of your beautifully described visions. I’ve seen many of them and they are magnificent! We, in The United States of America, even with our troubles, still live in THE best country in the world.
wayne umbertis - June 26, 2022 8:03 pm
The wonders and the beauty of the US is unquestioned. How it happened, the soul of the American idea, is the result of freedoms no other country has ever experienced. Those freedoms, our integrity as stewards of the dream, is under siege and it does leave people with an empty pit in their stomachs. See the good and the righteousness of our core and protect it. It’s our greatest gift.
MAM - June 26, 2022 8:04 pm
OK, after reading some of these insane comments from Katherine and N3ØWulf and Susie, and as a woman, I must say that what you truly need is to find God and Jesus Christ in your life. I could go on and on and on like you did, but all it would take is belief in your Creator. Remember that YOU were not aborted. You live, but that baby girl that was aborted had no say in her rights. Think about that!
N3ØWULF - June 27, 2022 2:49 am
MAM, I don’t need your pathetic god and Jesus in my life, because I have my own gods. I do respect your right to believe in them all you want, but you don’t have a right to force your beliefs on me anymore that the government has a right to make laws based on those beliefs. There’s a reason the Establishment Clause of the 1st Amendment exists, because church and state are Constitutionally required to be kept separate for this very reason. But when your daughters, granddaughters, great-granddaughters, and so on end up pregnant as a result of being raped while living in a state with trigger-laws that will outright ban abortion for any reason, don’t come crying to us when they have to carry that rape-pregnancy to full-term and constantly be reminded of the horrific event that got them pregnant to begin with. On another note, Roe v Wade was about more than abortion, it was about a woman’s 14th Amendment right to privacy. Roe v Wade is why we have HIPAA and ADA privacy laws now related to medical privacy, because what medical procedures a person chooses to have is none of yours or anyone else’s business. But now that Roe is overturned and the 14th Amendment has been rendered obsolete, maybe there will be trigger-laws that eliminates HIPAA and ADA laws that protect other medical records for ignorant people like you.
Rita Loveday - June 26, 2022 9:41 pm
We also have OB/GYN doctors who can no longer save a Mother’s life because she has an etopic pregnancy, or a mom who had a miscarriage and and is now septic. We have trans kids that the parent threw them our and thinks the preacher is right.Thinga look pretty bleak for many right now. We have state and national congresses where members are committing crimes and nothing is done to stop them.
But, yes, I tend to look on the bright side…but it is very dim right now.
Susan Kennedy - June 27, 2022 11:33 am
That is a ridiculous and blatant lie. Ectopic pregnancies can’t survive. The Fallopian tube will rupture. Removing that embryo is NOT a abortion. And a miscarriage is also a failed pregnancy and a d&c, which is surgical emptying of the uterus to prevent Sepsis, is NOT an abortion. Neither of these procedures are prohibited. I would explain more procedures to you, but I won’t take up any more space except to say : Get your facts straight before you post stuff that reveals how truly ignorant you are.
I won’t get into the other statement you made because you have picked the hills you want to die on. God will deal with all that one day. I’m just thankful that innocent babies have been given, maybe only briefly, the right and dignity they deserve.
Bill in Tennessee - June 26, 2022 9:42 pm
You’re right, Sean, our country doesn’t suck, as you remind us many times in your pages. Ordinary people doing extraordinary things is why I continue reading your daily entries.
But I will tell you what does suck… our once lauded institutions that were the envy of the world. The FBI and DOJ, our universities, our military, our foreign aid. One by one these institutions have become politicized and corrupted, and now I think they are beyond salvaging.
I served in the USMC during the Vietnam war…. didn’t go to Vietnam, the Marine Corps had other plans for me…but I served. Now I wonder if the country I served can ever come back.
I love my country, but am beginning to loathe everything our institutions stand for.
Mindy - June 26, 2022 10:16 pm
Truth. I had biscuits in Savannah that taste Ike generations of memaws love. Amazing!
Karen - June 26, 2022 10:23 pm
Sean, you nailed it. We need to look around at the real people of our country and not what the media presents as America.
Lori - June 26, 2022 10:25 pm
Amen brother! Lest us not forget the Great Smoky Mountains. I often say if you don’t believe in God, you’ve never been to the Smokies. We needed this one right now. God Bless you Sean.
Linda Moon - June 26, 2022 10:26 pm
I, too, heart America. I pay no attention to what the Suits say, Sean. My smart brain is a lot better than a so-called smart phone, therefore my attention can be used for beauty and creativity like Charleston at sunrise and Yellowstone at sundown. God Bless America…and you, too, Sean.
throughmyeyesusa - June 26, 2022 10:44 pm
Very sad that so few chimed in with their own litany of the things they find beautiful in our great nation. Instead it deteriorated into…..THIS. (What, no one cares about the Second Amendment? No one want to trash SCOTUS for their other big decision this last week?). I know abortion is a hot button issue and have two thoughts: 1. Every baby gets half its DNA from a MAN, so what’s with banishing mens’ right to have an opinion & express it, on the subject? 2. If this is about a female’s supreme right to determine what happens to her body, what about the (very nearly) 50% of unborn babies who are female? Where’s their “right to decide”?!
I ❤️ Maui sunsets, rainbows, clouds over the mountains, babies’ giggles, kittens, & my husband of 55 years. America doesn’t suck…..but CNN & politics sure do!
Ed (Bear) - June 26, 2022 11:57 pm
Sean’s post today is very timely, what with flag day and summer solstice in the recent past and Independence Day fast approaching. This is one of the many good times for us to stop and recognize all the greatness about our beautiful country. I loved hearing Sean talk about some of the wonderful things and places in our USA. I’m currently on a no pop tart diet, so I especially enjoyed the yummy food writings!
Thank you again Sean for sharing your gifts with us!
Ed
Robert Chiles - June 27, 2022 12:42 am
I love this country. It is gorgeous and has many kind and generous people whose stories you tell so well. It also has many serious problems and a lot of systemic evil. If I had just a little more money, I would move to Scotland, where at least I wouldn’t get murdered by some crazy person with a gun, and where my wife and daughter and granddaughters would not be second-class citizens as they have now become. Sean, I love your optimism. I have shared many of your thoughtful and positive columns on social media and even in sermons, but we need to step up to the plate and change some things for the better, not just always be pining for the “good old days.” Andy of Mayberry is gone and is never coming back.
CHARALEEN WRIGHT - June 27, 2022 1:04 am
❤️
Susan - June 27, 2022 2:11 am
It’s all about perspective, and you nailed it… look for the good. Always…you reap what you sow.
Pat - June 27, 2022 2:35 am
God gave us this beautiful country. It was a gift
And what we have let happen to it is disgusting.
We have stood by and let a few (out elected officials) run it into the ground. They have cheated and robbed us blind. And no one is standing up to stop it.
You are right about all the wonderful things that “don’t suck” but they are being out numbered.
As of today we have stopped abortions “on demand” but everyone will be made to suffer for it. Sadly our country has turned evil and somehow looking at something beautiful
Doesnt quite seem the same.
Kelly - June 27, 2022 3:50 am
Wow. Judging from the comments of so many on this, they are doing exactly what TV and all other media wants us all to do, which is hate…and we just need to bless their hearts and move on. They require no response. It must be exhausting to be so angry all the time. Thanks for all of your columns, Sean! Keep on doing what you are doing!
Glenda Williams - June 27, 2022 12:38 pm
Kelly, you hit the nail on the head, “It must be exhausting to be angry all the time.”
Bonnie - June 27, 2022 4:14 am
I could barely read the comments for today. Have any of you worked in a clinic that gives abortion counseling? Actually watched an ultrasound guided abortion, or an abortion at all? You realize there are multiple drugs and methods other than abortion to prevent you from having a baby right?
You speak of people putting their heads in the sand? You realize how far a pregnancy can be along and still get an abortion? You think a late term abortion does not affect the mother as well as the baby? They actually rip the baby apart limb by limb. It is the most barbaric way to die. Or how about the right to just let the baby lie on the table unattended to die if it happens to survive? We have become a nation of “ME ” people who reject responsibility in the name of self. You all can run through the sunshine with daisies in your teeth, but there will be a judgment on us as a nation for ALL our sexual self-centered crap. It’s way beyond political. It’s a spiritual problem.
Katrina Butler - June 27, 2022 4:17 am
I quote a legendary American and wise, wise man, “Blow up your TV, throw away your papers, move to the country, build you a home. Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches. They and find Jesus ON YOUR OWN!
Katrina Butler - June 27, 2022 11:15 am
Oops trying to write in the middle of the night I messed up a word. John Prine’s song says, “Blow up your TV. Throw away your papers. Move to the country. Build you a home. Plant a little garden. Eat a lot of peaches. Try and find Jesus on your own.”
🇿🇦🇿🇦 Norma Den - June 27, 2022 10:51 am
Posting a day later from South Africa. I was filled with HOPE after reading this column, even in our country. Every country in the world has its problems, it’s up to the good people to be positive. I just wonder how a column filled with positivity can develop into the vitriolic political discussion filled with self opinionated comments from very angry and unhappy people. The column had NOTHING to do with politics or abortion. Get your opinions and anger onto the right track. I’m neither for or against abortion, it’s sad, very sad, but surely the decision should and must be made with all the evidence and decisions by the woman in the situation. My daughter is a highly qualified midwife with years of experience. She’s seen the trauma of families dealing with the after effects of drugs, alcohol, rape etc and pregnancy. Sean this column turned nasty in the comments, but it filled me with much needed HOPE for a tired and sad world. Keep on looking UP.
April ellington - June 27, 2022 11:33 am
Amen!
Joyce Basse - June 27, 2022 12:13 pm
I decided to read through some of the comments on this post. Those of you who are ‘pro abortion’, can you please give me a reasonable explanation as to why a woman would wait 9 months before she decided to kill/murder her baby?
N3ØWULF - June 27, 2022 3:57 pm
Joyce Basse, there’s numerous reasons that a late-term abortion is necessary, I’ll give you a few. As the unborn fetus develops it may not develop normally and have severe issues that require it be aborted for the health and of the mother and to prevent the health issues the child will suffer from after birth. A fetus dies in the womb and needs to be removed for the mother’s health. Believe it not most women who get late-term abortions because they didn’t want the child, most do it because unforeseen health issues for them and/or the baby arises that we’re not detectable at earlier stages in the pregnancy.
Glenda Williams - June 27, 2022 12:37 pm
Yes!!!
RECAFFEINATED MONDAYS: Edited – The Write Side of My Brain - June 27, 2022 12:43 pm
[…] I Heart America Sean of the South Still, maybe it’s not his fault. I don’t know what his story is, I don’t know what his beliefs are, but perhaps this boy has missed a few uniquely American blessings in his accumulated years of harrowed wisdom. Read More. […]
Proroe - June 27, 2022 1:36 pm
A house divided against itself cannot stand,” Lincoln warned Americans
Carol - June 27, 2022 1:39 pm
Sunrise over Cadillac Mt in Acadia National Park, Maine Great list!
TN - June 27, 2022 1:40 pm
It also doesn’t suck because at least 5 people still believe in Constitutional rights and a whole bunch of us still believe LIFE matters.
Sharon Barnett - June 27, 2022 3:33 pm
I agree wholeheartedly!
N3ØWULF - June 27, 2022 4:32 pm
TN you are part of the problem by believing your religious beliefs should trump Constitutionally protected rights. I bet when it comes to the 1A, that allows you to have whatever ridiculous religious beliefs you want, you are willing to fight to preserve that! I’ll also bet that when it comes to the 2A or any other Amendment you benefit from the same applies! Yet because there’s another Constitutionally protected right you disagree with you believe it’s okay to strip that away from those that benefit from its protection.
Duane Shelley - June 28, 2022 11:42 pm
N30WULF I noticed that you did not spell out where the constitution give anyone the right to kill a baby.
Connie - June 27, 2022 1:46 pm
Beautiful Sean.
Michael Tunis - June 27, 2022 2:18 pm
Perfect example of sticking your head in the sand.
Anita Loupe - June 27, 2022 2:22 pm
I totally agree ❤️☺️
Brant - June 27, 2022 3:05 pm
I love most of this post, but, to be honest, I didn’t read it until I read the venomous response you posted later.
I think some folks get their minds all tangled up in the sensationalism in our news services. They need to look around and see for themselves some of the good things God has blessed us with, including the ability to see colors so we can enjoy sunsets and sunrises. Like your positivity Sean. Don’t forget the God of your youth, however biased our ancestors may have been who presented it to you/us.
Brant
Amy Bloom - June 27, 2022 3:16 pm
Thank you, I needed to read this today.
DONNA FISHER - June 27, 2022 4:07 pm
Sean, this is wonderful. And you are so right – everyday Americans are a wonderful and diverse crowd, embracing each other and making their little spaces of the world better, despite social and moral carnage around them.
Michelle - June 27, 2022 4:32 pm
I totally agree with everything you wrote. It is the television. And personal perception and attitude.
Terrie Sizemore - June 27, 2022 5:35 pm
very nice, sorry you received backlash from such a lovely post – helped me remember I love America
wayne umbertis - June 27, 2022 6:09 pm
People who know it all are the most dangerous of all, especially if their lightening rod was delivered by their god.
J Laufer - June 27, 2022 6:10 pm
It’s curious to me that so many people who responded negatively to the column on loving America, focus so much criticism on what they assume Sean’s opinion is about the Supreme Court’s ruling regarding abortion. Nowhere in the column is abortion, or the Supreme Court, or any specific political view expressed. It is not even indicated what the “talking head” on the television was talking about.
Laura - June 27, 2022 7:59 pm
Amen!!!
TreehouseV - June 27, 2022 8:20 pm
Sean, you are 100% correct. Keep up your important and good work.
Bill albright - June 27, 2022 8:35 pm
I am very blessed that cell phones were not around when I was growing up. Do not remember a TV before about age 9. All we did was get outside and play. The world was a great place in my youth. Never heard of a computer, calculator, or other electronic device. Made it with a pencil. I’m happy. Sorry for a lot of the young people today – they have everything, but don’t know or appreciate it. Shame.
Bill Albright
Suellen - June 27, 2022 11:18 pm
I’m a very political person. I follow politics intensely. But this page has always been a place to get away from the ugliness of the world. Politics and fighting has no place here. Let us go back to uplifting each other and loving each other. If you want to fight, take it up with your elected representatives.
Allen Berry - June 27, 2022 11:53 pm
Thank you for the much needed reminder. This is still good country. We are still good people, even though we seem to forget it now and again.
I get pretty down about America lately. Thanks to you, I can get back up again.
You’re absolutely right.
Ph.Dude
George Culver - June 28, 2022 1:53 am
You go Sean!
Melissa Norman - June 28, 2022 2:16 am
Amen!!!
Gordon Walden - June 28, 2022 10:32 am
And all of God’s people said Amen!
Lee Taylor - June 28, 2022 4:08 pm
WELL SAID!
Joan Mitchell - June 28, 2022 10:35 pm
Please keep on shining the light.
Jenny - June 29, 2022 12:18 am
Please read this Sean!
Thanks Sean for reminding us of the amazing things we can concentrate on that unite us, instead of the ones that divide us so obviously. Please keep writing.
Don’t stop. We so much need folks like you, or at least I know I do. There have been times that I have been so full of sorrow – for a variety of reasons that are personal. I have read one of your columns and sobbed with relief, joy, peace, whatever word I am trying to grasp – HOPE! I reckon.
Please don’t stop writing. We need you so very much.
Wanda Douglas - June 29, 2022 2:13 am
Well said! We take a lot for granted, don’t we?
Roxanne - June 29, 2022 6:15 am
I have read 85% of the comments so I felt I could leave my own things to love about America:
An evening breeze off the Gulf of Mexico in Galveston, Texas.
The smell of fresh mown hay and the sound of crickets (outside in the meadow, NOT inside the house) on a summer night in Bastrop, Louisiana.
The flowery smell of something NOT southern in Creede, Colorado while eating the best S’more I’ve ever had in my life thanks to an altitude of 11,000 feet.
The first time you see the sugar sand quartz beaches and turquoise blue waters of Pensacola, Florida.
The smell of decaying and burning leaves on the first crisp Friday night of high school football season.
The sound of my baby daughter’s cry when she didn’t make a sound for far too long at Women’s hospital in Houston, Texas, and the other physicians in THE WORLD’s LARGEST MEDICAL CENTER who saved her life.
The pride on my son’s face when he shot his first buck in Richland Parish, and the tears that we both shed over my Daddy’s grave when we stopped there to tell his Pop that he got a big one.
The right to vote.
The right to worship.
The right to disagree.
The right to speak.
The unalienable rights that we continue to debate as one nation, under God, whether we always like it or not.
I, for one, love our country. Thank you, Father, for your blessings. Thank you, Sean, for sharing your gift.
Anne Trawick - June 30, 2022 12:35 am
And I heart your column.
marion andrews - June 30, 2022 10:21 am
AMEN
Jeffrey Morrow - June 30, 2022 1:13 pm
The yellow handle Case the one thing that is still American and will never suck. Totes one since I was 10 years old. Remember me I’m the from the Eastwood Home Depot we had our picture made together. Love your column.
Susan Sloan - July 3, 2022 12:29 pm
May be your best ever! Thank you.
Christine Swain - July 4, 2022 2:05 am
Thank you for reminding of us all that’s great about our country.
Buddy Caudill - July 14, 2022 5:25 am
Amen !
Fulvia - July 16, 2022 4:14 pm
AMEN!