The American Jellyfish

The question (probably because of 9-11 Anniversary and thinking about The Constitution, Bill of Rights, and "All Men Are Created Equal") I have been contemplating lately could be asked several ways...

"How many times has America died?"

"How many times has America been reborn?"

"How many Americas have there been?"

To answer these questions, I have considered many events that are considered major turning points in our history...The Revolution, The Constitutional Convention, The Civil War, The World Wars, The Civil Rights Movement, 9-11...

My answer...in my opinion, there have been 4 distinct Americas so far (3 deaths and rebirths).

The First America- The Revolution, The Constitution, The Bill of Rights, political parties, Liberty v. Order...a land for the well-educated, land holding white men, Westward Expansion, slavery, Native American destruction, women as second class "citizens", deep national Sectionalism, etc.

This First America was inevitably destroyed by The Civil War...

The Second America- Reconstruction, White Power, Immigration, The Red Scare, The Great Depression, The World Wars, non-stop lynching, massive Industrialization, etc....all dominated by the overarching shadow of Jim Crow.

The Second America was "destroyed" by The Civil Rights Movement...

The Third America- Another Red Scare, The Civil Rights Movement, The Feminist Movement, The Era of Protest, Vietnam, Watergate and the mistrust of government, "the end" of The Cold War, The War on Drugs, etc.

The Third America was destroyed on 9-11...

The Fourth America- Terrorism, racial profiling, police brutality, biased 24/7 "media" coverage, educational dropouts, unemployment, immigration issues, Big Brother always watching and controlling, drone attacks, a "Jerry Springer" Society, mistrust of everybody...

When the Fourth America dies...will we be reborn? 

Better or worse?

Will we want to be judged by our words or our actions?

Can we be the hero?!?

IMO...Only if we grasp tightly, read, understand, and live "The Bill of Rights".

How many Americas do you think we've had?  What would be your turning points?