Violence, Refuge and Nation-Building

Part 2 of America at Bat

The Soviet invasion of Hungary, Poland and Eastern Europe during the spread of Communism after WWII, provided an outsized contribution to American industrial, scientific and global growth.?

Refuge

Refuge from Europe’s religious and cultural wars led not only to the Founding of America but also to her global prominence.?

The Twice Blessed?

America: Refuge and the Quality of Mercy

I have cited in America at Bat-Part 1, the violent Soviet intervention against Hungary’s Revolt in 1956?and evidence of the contribution made by refugees to America’s growth and development.?

Andrew Stephen Grove?(born?András István Gróf; 2 September 1936?– 21 March 2016) was a Hungarian-American businessman and engineer who served as the third CEO of?Intel Corporation.?

Born of Refuge?

America was born of Refuge and Violence?

A Little History

The Pilgrims and my ancestors came to America with the Winthrop Voyages, 6 years after the Mayflower. They came to America as refugees from the religious and cultural wars and violence of Europe.

The Norman Conquest

The wars and violence of the Norman Conquest had led to the creation of a new England and her laws.

Side Note: The Third Invasion of Crimea?

Quora: There is a little-known but fascinating episode in British history known as?the Anglo-Saxon emigration to Byzantium?(Constantinople). It led to the founding of a ‘New England’ settlement of Anglo-Saxon exiles in Crimea.?

Demystifying Innovation

The Great Myth and Metaphor?

Part of The Great Myth is that science, technology and economic growth are somehow isolated from immigration and the twice blessed - those that provide refuge and those who receive it. The myth and metaphor continue with the delusion that somehow the innovation provided by refugees to America has ceased. How absurd!?

The Twice Blessed?

Metaphor is more powerful than myth. It associates power with the attributes of goodness and mercy. It is compelling and is trusted.?

As André van Heerden noted, metaphor used as propaganda has a dual purpose.?"Intellect, the culture-creating part of the human mind is incessantly at work. However, ingenuity, like all human attributes, is misused at least as frequently as it is deployed to do good. Directed by hubris, it is dangerous; guided by love, it becomes inspirational. Understanding our creative ability demands a deep awareness of this dual potential. It is our great advantage in the on-going task to procreate and prosper, yet its quality and application are inevitably determined by character and culture."

War and Trade

War does not determine who is right - only who is left ~ Bertrand Russel

Trade?

Since the time of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom, the Peoples of the Sea have pursued war and conquered Egypt. They also engaged in trade and there is evidence of this trade throughout the Levant and the Eastern Mediterranean.??

Today, the incompetence of the violent and warlike again confront civilization and the civilizing.?

The myth has been perpetrated that certain so-called badass? elements of American society represent the MAGA attempt to benefit America First. This feigned Patriotism is a powerful reminder of what Faulkner wrote about history:?

It reminds one of Asimov:

and Shelby Foote:

Trade and Justice

As Shakespeare reminded us of the Merchant of Venice:?

The quality of mercy is not strained;

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven

Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest;

It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:

Tis mightiest in the mightiest. It becomes

The thronèd monarch better than his crown.

His scepter shows the force of temporal power,

The attribute to awe and majesty

Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings,

But mercy is above this sceptered sway.

It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings.

It is an attribute to God himself.

And earthly power doth then show likest God’s

When mercy seasons justice.? ~ William Shakespeare

Continued with Innovation: Myth and Metaphor