French national wants Statue of Liberty back

Did anyone hear that someone in the French parliament had an idea of asking for the Statue of Liberty back?
Getting ready for work, I heard the story on NPR News Now and it stopped me mid brush, which is saying something because I don’t have much hair left.
Tina Hauck hasn’t solved that problem for me yet.
Indian givers. The French, of all people, are disappointed in the way President Trump is handling immigration in the United States.
The French, who could’ve been swallowed up in any number of wars – or as Aaron Sorkin may write - any substantial thunderstorm – have a guy ranting that America is no longer the country accepting of the tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free, and the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Apparently, the French think we’re no longer lifting the lamp at our golden door.
I’ve never been to France. Not sure I will ever go there, but the French Open seems like something that could be fun, if just for the food.
Art, romance, culture, – and food, are things that draw tourists to France. But a little arrogance makes it six of one, half dozen of the other on whether a trip there would be worth it.
Probably would be.
Has this country pivoted in the way it perceives the tired and the poor? Yes. But so has history. Are the people crossing into the country from the north and south and everywhere else looking for a better life in the U.S? Maybe not to the degree that they were when the French recognized America’s open arms with a boat carrying more than 200 crates and 350 pieces on a frigate into the New York Harbor.
The idea of loading that awe-inspiring 150-foot colossus back onto a ship and sending it back across the ocean seems heartbreaking at first, but a little laughable all things considered.
it not only stands for opportunity in America, but it also represents freedom and was inspired by the Greek Goddess Libertas. But it doesn’t stand as a beacon of hope for a new life here, it also honors the end of slavery. The Lady stands on a broken chain and shackle. Many people don’t know that.
So one guy in an office got a knee-jerk idea after observing the immigration rhetoric in America. And although the ask should give us pause to realize people around the world are watching, it should be received with lots of grains of salt.
It takes me back to the lectures from parents when we didn’t clean our plate - the “there are starving people out there” argument. That was shot at us for taking for granted the meal in front of us.
The Statue of Liberty isn’t a use-it-or-lose it gift. But it sure speaks to the emotional level globally. Things are a lot different than they were just a year ago, and the world knows it. The U.S. is drawing hard lines with many other countries and recalibrating internally. Whether that ultimately results in positive or negative results is yet to be seen. But with a foreign national telling America maybe they should give the Statue of Liberty back to France, it certainly paints a clear picture of what the world thinks of what America has become.
It may not be a bad thing that they picture us this way. Some of them say we must live up to the promise of America and we are no longer doing that.
Some say the first promise is the promise TO America and that means to our citizenry first. There’s an argument to be made that President Trump is struggling living up to either promise, but again, he’s certainly got everyone’s attention.
Hinting that America should give back one of its more revered gifts is gutsy, if not a bit sophomoric. But no one can argue it’s a telling development.
Speaking of shocking developments, I had a bracket in the ESPN men’s tournament that was ranked in the top one-tenth of 1% headed into Elite 8 play. Out of 26 million brackets entered into the sports network’s annual contest being ranked that high… and I was still 31,250 places out of first place is another WOW moment, But that’s Beside the Point.
Chuck Vandenberg is editor and co-owner of Pen City Current and can be reached at Charles.V@PenCityCurrent.com.