Lincoln and Delbanco

I found Delbanco’s example about the depiction of Lincoln in a movie and how he juxtaposed it to some of the qualities of the United States to be quite interesting. According to Delbanco, when Lincoln was bullied at school, he attempted to turn the other cheek and avoid confrontation. However, in the end, Lincoln agreed to a wrestling match, and after defeating his enemy, Lincoln and his bully became fast friends. Delbanco then continued to compare Lincoln’s actions in this movie to how the U.S. defeated Germany in World War II, but now are allies. I find this to be continually true of the U.S. system of gaining “friends”. We have a tendency to invade a country and destroy everything; thus, forcing the country to become somewhat dependent on us for resources. Instant friends. Currently, the U.S. military is in Iraq and cannot leave because the country’s new system of operating would fall apart without us. We went in to defeat the enemy (or find us some quality oil) and ended up taking care of the Iraqis, even when they do not want to be taken care of. I understand that Delbanco was making his point that Lincoln, as an icon, has been used as a reflection of the United States; however, we should not use him to reflect the U.S., but to guide it. In using Lincoln simply as an icon that reflects our country, the U.S. cannot improve. Nobody ever changed by looking in the mirror. This country must look to the ideals and concepts Lincoln stood for, as he was a great man, and at this point in time, should not have to bare the reflection of our issues.

p.s. I used to play with Lincoln Logs!