BY FRANK VERNUCCIO
Much of the heated debate
fl aming across the nation is
not political. It is, instead, indicative
of a vast cultural divide
that no single election
can properly address or totally
heal.
COVID exposed some of the
rift that has developed. In an
effort to stop the spread, both
left and right acknowledged
that certain nonessential activities
needed to be avoided.
They defi ned “essential” differently,
however, based on
their cultural inclinations.
With a rather unseemly
haste, places of worship were
closed. Even after the worst of
the pandemic was over, many
on the left were reluctant to
open up churches and synagogues.
What the nation’s
Founders considered vital,
Leftists considered trivial. The
same Progressives who considered
gatherings in houses of
worship a threat saw no problem
with mass demonstrations
with participants standing side
by side in the hundreds completely
acceptable. Another
facet was seen recently. While
bending to popular will and
maintaining the tradition of a
National Day of Prayer, Biden’s
proclamation managed to omit
all mention of God.
The most basic underlying
concepts that formed the
United States have been openly
abandoned by many. The new
nation was unique in that it
centered around the merits,
rights, and responsibilities, of
the individual. It didn’t matter
whether one’s parents were
royalty or vagrants; a person
was to be judged on what he or
she did. With the same reasoning,
an individual was not to
be rewarded or punished for
what his or her ancestors did.
That idea is the very antithesis
of current Progressive
ideology, which views people
are cogs in a larger wheel of
race or other groupings. Concepts
such as “reparations”
are based on the deeds of generations
BY TONY SALIMBENE
Hope you had a Happy Memorial
Day – see I said it again. I
was researching what you are
supposed to say but didn’t see
anything somewhat offi cial.
Remember, Memorial Day is
for the remembrance of our war
(and confl icts) dead, originally
Decoration Day. It signals the
start of Summer which means
Party! – so it gets a bit confusing.
Fox News is running a great
‘Thanks for your service’ event.
Nice, but wrong day, that would
be Veteran’s Day.
Our Active Duty young men
and women? That’s Armed
Forces Day, most people forgot
that one.
How about those not accounted
for from our battles?
BRONX TIMES R 44 EPORTER, JUNE 4-10, 2021 BTR
past, not those currently
in existence. Replacing
the classic American idea of
equality with “equity” is part
of that theme.
There is a tie-in between
the Left’s disdain of judging
individuals on their own merits
and the rejection of the Judeo
Christian ethic, which
recognizes the unique value
of each soul. It’s a trend that
took root in the horrifi c totalitarian
regimes of the past
century. Communism, which
was the basis of the USSR, envisioned
a “New Soviet Man”
who only saw himself as a part
of a larger collective. Germany’s
National Socialism reduced
individual humans to
nothing more than part of racial
groupings.
The rejection of individualism
has an economic component.
Referring to those
who built businesses, Barack
Obama, during his presidency,
told those hard-working entrepreneurs
that “They didn’t
build that,” that somehow the
countless hours they worked
and sacrifi ces they made had
no value.
The essential belief in
equality under the law has
been abandoned by the Left.
The felonies committed by
those with the correct Progressive
ideological leanings
appear to have a “get out of jail
free” card. The current push
to politicize the U.S. Supreme
Court is part of that.
It’s not just that Americans
are divided and arguing.
That’s been a constant. Honest
disagreement is not necessarily
unhealthy if core principles
are shared. But those
core principles are no longer
in vogue for too many. Even
during the most tumultuous
eras, recognition of the right
to express one’s opinion kept
the nation together. But the
wholescale attack on the First
Amendment that began in
universities and spread to the
larger population as well as
corporate leadership has dramatically
fouled that safety
net.
If the assault came exclusively
from an authoritarianminded
group of Washington
politicians, corrective measures
could be taken with far
more ease than the culturewide
phenomenon of “cancelling”
now dominating too
much of society.
Elections will not resolve
the challenge. Americans, as
individuals, need to reassess
whether the basic cultural,
economic, and Constitutional
principles that built the most
successful society on Earth
are worth preserving.
CIVIC CENTER
Community Action
Civic Association
On Saturday, June 22, Community Board 10 hosted a free shredding event for the community at the Greek
Church Parking Lot.
BY GUILLERMO FLORES
Bronx Community Engagement
Manager, NYCSmoke
Free
COVID 19 has taken the
lives of over half a million
Americans since the outset
of the pandemic. In NY State
alone, over 1,860,000 COVID
19 cases have been reported
and over 31,000 NYC residents
have lost their lives
due to COVID 19. To say that
this pandemic is a major
challenge for everyone is an
understatement. As a public
health professional, I have
faced the challenge of continuing
the important work
that I do in tobacco control
with the harsh reality that
we are all living through. It
is a balancing act to be sensitive
and not tone deaf and
focus on the fact that tobacco
remains the leading cause
of preventable death in the
US and in New York. With
that, I will make a few points
that are important to keep in
mind even during this pandemic.
One, the tobacco epidemic
is not over: over 28,000
New Yorkers continue to die
every year from tobacco.
Two, New York spends more
than 10.4 billion dollars each
year caring for people made
sick from smoking. Three, a
comprehensive tobacco control
program saves lives and
money by providing the necessary
work and resources
that is needed to fi ght the tobacco
epidemic in New York.
Together, we will get through
this and fi ght COVID 19 and
tobacco, two killers that have
taken away too many people’s
lives in our country and
state.
CIVIC CENTER
Throggs Neck
Community Action
Partnership
That’s the POW-MIA Memorial
Vigil which is the 3rd Friday
in September (thank you again
Post 1456).
I remember the Memorial
Day ceremonies at the Wissman
Mansion, the 3rd gathering
place for Korony Post 253 when I
was a kid. No hot dogs until after
the Commander’s speech and
the sounding of taps. We also
had the tradition of gathering
spent rifl e shells you could use
as a whistle! I hope all of you will
take some time to instill core
American Values to the younger
generation in your family.
I guess we can stretch it and
say we are ‘happy’, happy for our
freedom of speech, religion and
freedom to disagree in a orderly
manner.
Until Next Time: Hope you
all had a peaceful, blessed, patriotic
(but cold) Memorial Day
Weekend! Make every day Memorial
Day.
Reminder: the next Post 253
meeting is Sunday, June 27 with
Elections and Annual BBQ, at
TN Memorial Post 1456, usual
times.
CIVIC CENTER
Korony Post 253
Community Board 10 Hosts Shredding Event