Happy birthday, America! This year, Independence Day and its message are serious business. Here are a few thoughts for your consideration.

• It is not okay to have a Soviet-style display of military hardware on Independence Day. The President is like one of those Roman emperors who was jealous of generals who had earned a triumph and so had one for himself. It’s a sad, undemocratic spectacle.
• We must speak out about the inhumane detention of asylum seekers. The debate about what to call these places is unproductive and distracting. They are inhumane, degrading to us and to the people detained, and illegal both under our own law and as a matter of international law. Call or write to your representatives today! And looking at the broader issue of immigration and its centrality to our nation, remind this Administration and its supporters of one of the Revolutionaries’ grievances against the British king:
  

  He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither …

Enjoy your picnics and the fireworks, spend time with friends, and don’t let our awful politics get you down! America is counting on all of us.