I was just saying to my student teacher today that America doesn't have an origin story that most of us can believe in, that inspires us and unites us. That's because our ideology is fractured and our mindset is on survival rather than thriving. So we're becoming jaded and cynical about this country, as Umair's essay suggests. This is BAD for the future. But how to fix it? I don't know. I hate to say it, but ... another civil war? Purify the blood of the nation, so to speak? Miserable choice, but I fear we don't the sort of leaders who are capable on both sides of the aisle to pull us together.