The issues with the Jamestown commemoration arise because we have lived so
long in a cocoon of myth.  The bedrock of our national myth has been that we
were born in a state of innocence.  It's the foundation of our notion that
we are a good people, uniquely virtuous and blessed.  It's the concept of
American exceptionalism.  This gives us our optimism and our sense of
justice.  We are a funny people -- we want to be rich and powerful and
perfectly innocent all at once.  I don't think anyone has managed that
throughout human history.  Sustaining that core belief in American innocence
has required a good bit of denial, not just about slavery and what was done
to the Native Americans, but a lot of things. (Mormons are on the hot seat
at the moment because their innocent origins have been called into question
by the PBS documentary that brought up the Mountain Meadows Massacre. You
can find that discussion on H-SHEAR.)  Lots of new information about our
past is just now being recovered, and we're all still processing it.  So
there's controversy -- no surprise.  The big question is -- will the weather
be good this weekend at Jamestown?

Henry Wiencek
Charlottesville