A Russian historian, who interviewed in 1993 about the collapse of the Soviet Union in the second half of 1993, said: I am an American student in St. Petersburg and he was referring to the United States.
His argument was informed by pseudo-scientific demographic theory that ultimately finds favor in the Kremlin, but what is more prominent to me was the hope he spoke.
(AP Photo/Boris Yurchenko)
If this man is still alive, he must feel proven. From thwarting USAID to abandoning European allies, the current setback of America from engagement around the world constitutes the surrender of power comparable to Mikhail Gorbachev’s unilateral withdrawal from Afghanistan, Eastern Europe, and the collapse of the Soviet Union between 1988 and 1991.
With both foreign policies, deep changes in the ideological foundations of the two states cannot be overlooked.
Unstable Master Signifier
Gorbachev justified his “reorganization” or perestroika by calling on Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union. However, he did so by observing that the historic Lenin had policies that were practically modified according to the circumstances. It raised doubts on the mythical Lenin. It is an indeed hero who cannot question virtue.
Alexei Yurcach, a Russian-born American anthropologist, claims that Lenin is the “master signifier” of the Soviet system.
(AP photo)
As long as his holiness remains unquestionable, referring to Lenin could justify a variety of policies and actions. However, looking at Lenin through the historical lens made him question his sanctity. As a result, it has become impossible for Soviet citizens to agree on what policies and actions are legal. This sense of crisis has allowed chronic political, economic and social issues to suddenly become devastating.
The main symbol in America is the constitution, where Lenin’s body is not in Moscow, but in honor of Washington, DC. But under President Donald Trump, violations of the constitution have become routine, with the federal legislative department showing little will to protect its authority from enforcement infringement. Like Lenin under Gorbachev, the sacred center of the American political system appears to be unstable.
As a written contract, the Constitution is easier to interpret than the thought of a dead man. However, the advantage of Lenin was that he was able to embody the traits considered to be noble in the Soviet system. Where can Americans find the same type of guide light?
For most of American history, it was George Washington. It was the first president who vowed to support the Constitution.
(AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
George Washington’s America
As a hero of the Revolutionary War, Washington could have been king.
Army officers were dissatisfied with the weaknesses of the postwar central government under the alliance clause and were seen as a coup. Washington, the commander of the Army, may have led the overthrow (as Oliver Cromwell had, or Napoleon Bonaparte would).
Washington refused, and after the British surrender in 1783, he abandoned his order to Parliament.
In 1789, after the constitution was ratified as a legal solution to the issue of the Union, Washington was unanimously elected president. However, after two conditions he rejected the proposal to support a third.
He frequently emphasized the importance of habits in human issues, and reasoned that if he stuck to power, Americans might not be used to peaceful, regular occupational rotations. By retiring he transferred much of the respect that reached him into the Constitution.
(Metropolitan Museum)CC by
Remembering Washington
Washington’s birthday fell on February 22nd, and the Americans began to observe it while he was still alive. In 1879, the US Congress created an opportunity to celebrate the federal public holidays, examples of selfless public service and respect the rule of law embodied by “the Father of His Country.”
Therefore, it remained until 1971.
That year, the Monday Holiday Act came into effect. The ACT, adopted in 1968 at the request of Business Lobby, seeing a sales opportunity over the three-day weekend, moved to Washington’s birthday on the third Monday of February.
(AP Photo/Jaclyn Martin)
Many states also celebrated Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, and as new dates fell between him and Washington, some began calling it “President’s Day.” When national advertisers and calendar makers adopted the term in the 1980s, it became official.
Of course, the name change erodes Holiday’s connection with Washington, becoming associated with all presidents, effectively cheaper as long as it remained more than the day of shopping. Federal public holidays remain officially “Washington’s Birthday,” but few Americans know that.
Read more: Presidential Greatness is rarely locked in stone – changing attitudes towards racial injustice and leadership qualities lead to dramatic changes
The dangers of myths
The shift coincided with a wave of revisionist historiography, which pointed out that slave owner Washington was not perfect.
Read more: What Florida is wrong about George Washington and the benefits he received from enslaving black people
All histories are revisionist in the sense that historians revise existing interpretations based on new evidence. But for those who wanted an uncontaminated idol, it seemed Washington could no longer fit the bill or had to massage historical facts.
Since then, historical assessments have tended to get lost in the culture war. There, neither side can accept real people with both condemnable and stunning features.
However, in the Soviet Union, most citizens found it difficult to think historically about Lenin. Because under the conditions of a dictatorship, public discussions based on factual information about him were not possible.
(AP Photos/File)
The dictatorship relies on mythical thinking that worships heroes and does not expose the contradiction between official declarations and reality. In the early 1990s, Russians failed to establish the rule of law for similar reasons. They were unable to overcome mythological habits and put personality prioritized over policy.
The personality they chose as Boris Yeltsin, the first independent president of Russia, lacked respect for Washington’s rule of law.
Read more: The Wild Decade: How the 1990s laid the foundations of Vladimir Putin in Russia
I’m losing sight of Washington
Washington has made the US a better start. However, by abandoning the broad commemoration of his historically exceptional respect for the rule of law, Americans lost the opportunity to practice historical thinking in public places.
Not only did mythical thinking have invaded, it is still possible for the president to style himself as a monarch and emulate Napoleon, as Donald Trump has.
The Constitution – the American Master Signifier – has lost the ability to unite citizens around a sense of meaning.
Will Washington’s country be next?
