Letters

What do they teach in school these days, I wonder?

Having a true liberal (broad-based) arts education, I was exposed to the ancient Greek mythology and philosophy. For a fun twist, I have a beautiful old copy of an interpretation of these myths illustrated by Maxwell Parrish, created for children. Sigh. The things we once taught.

We, especially the MAGA crowd, perhaps never encountered these ideas. If they did, they did not much understand them.

The sign around the corner from me says, “America is back.” I disagree. First of all, this is just the United States. Second, the notion that we are the biggest consumer market in the world and are thereby justified in bullying the entire world, telling everyone from Brazil to Greenland what to do and how to think, negotiating for Ukraine like it’s some pot in a poker game, is breathtaking overreach. Using illegal immigration as a cover for government takeover of cities is breaking the laws that have kept us safe and stable for decades.

The ancient Greeks told what happens when we act suffused with hubris. Like Icarus, we crash and burn. Like Sisyphus, we are condemned to eternal struggle and suffering. Hubris is countered by Nemesis, the goddess of vengeance, justice and retribution.

This administration uses the language without understanding the foundation.

Choosing a side is becoming necessary. Choose carefully.

Amy Paradise

Hampton Bays