It is by an act of force,
or coup de théâtre*
geographical exile of the Founding Fathers of the seventeenth century
adding itself to the voluntary exile of man within his own consciousness –
that what in Europe had remained a critical and religious esotericism
became transformed on the New Continent into a pragmatic exotercism.
The whole foundation of America is a response to this dual operation
of deepening the moral law in individual consciousness,
a radicalization of the utopian demand
which was always that of Sects,
and the immediate materialization of that utopia,
in work, custom, and way of life.
To land in America is,
even today, to land in that ‘religion’ of the way of life
which Tocqueville described.
This material utopia of the way of life,
where success and action
are seen as profound illustrations of the moral law…

America is the original version of modernity.
We [Europeans] are the dubbed or subtitled version.
America ducks the question of origins;
it cultivates no origin or mythical authenticity;
it has no past and no founding truth.
Having known no primitive accumulation of time,
it lives in a perpetual present.
Having seen no slow, centuries-long accumulation of principle truth,
it lives in perpetual simulation, in a perpetual present of signs.

America has no identity problem.
in the future, power will belong to those peoples
with no origins and no authenticity
who know how to exploit that situation to the full.

Excerpt America by Jean Baudrillard, p. 76

*a sensational or dramatically sudden action or turn of events.

The Independence Day weekend ‘celebration’ continues.  There were two speeches given by the president, one at Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota and the other in Washington.  The speeches were reminiscent of Baudrillard’s observations.  The president attempted to demonize those who disagree with his racist policies, his tacit endorsement of white supremacist ideology, and his opening of protected lands to development, exploitation by his allies in the business sector.  In multiple ways the president has demonstrated his disdain for legislative process, for the rule of law and for precedent.  He is a living icon of raw imposition of will, a purpose to perform ex nihilo what one desires no matter the consequences to others.  The president declared those who disagree with him to be radical, enemies of Americas core principles, — “a threat to American values and heritage.”  His point of view, fanatical, cult-like, — is a judgment outside of reasoned argument.  He stands alone, a man of action, his success self authenticating, its own justification. 

As a Trump supporter commented to me, “if he is not smart, how did he get to be president ….?”

Meanwhile the Coronavirus spreads with increasing momentum, unrestrained, across the west and the south.

The photo: In the hours before the Presidents speech activists and members of different tribes from the region block the road to the Mount Rushmore National Monument as they protest in Keystone, South Dakota on July 3, 2020. The Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the Black Hills — where Mount Rushmore resides — was unlawfully taken from the Sioux people. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty