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Citizens of the Republic,
While wandering the streets of New York City last October, I came across an Italian restaurant that lauded that it brought the first-ever espresso machine from Italy to the United States of America.
As the proud son of an Australian immigrant, who has long believed our country’s pluralism is one of its greatest strengths, I could not help but stop and reflect upon this remarkable story.
Consider for a moment. Many of us drink coffee. In fact, I would wager nowadays you would be hard-pressed to find a coffee shop in America, Italian or otherwise, which does not have an espresso machine.
Yet once upon a time, there existed an America which did not have espresso machines. Once upon a time, espresso machines were an unknown phenomenon. Then, one day, an enterprising individual decided to introduce espresso machines to our country.
Whereupon this invention eventually became a not-so-new invention as it spread across our country. Until, one day, the idea of going out for espresso was no longer a novelty. It became the norm.
This story reminds us of a great truism of our society: We are a nation of immigrants. Immigrants innovate.
Fast forward to the present day and the fears that many Americans have for the future of our country. Some believe our country is irreparably broken. Others will not tolerate any criticism, constructive or otherwise.
Yet if we reflect upon our country’s experience with espresso, I suggest that there is a third option we might consider.
Let us imagine for a moment that you own a beautiful old house that requires maintenance. It needs a new plumbing and heating system, but it still has great street appeal, and you can’t find molding like that anymore.
Basically, you have three options for what you can do with it:
- Leave it,
- Demolish it; or
- Renovate it.
Personally, I vote for the third option.
If the American healthcare system needs to be improved and Australia has a better healthcare system – then why are we, as a nation of immigrants, not looking at that?
If the Scandinavian countries have higher-ranked education systems, what lessons can we learn from them?
A responsible homeowner cares about maintaining and improving their property. Let’s maintain and improve our country.
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