In Impromptus today, I go on a bit about the theme of the hour, or one of them: the de-exceptionalization of America (if that is what is taking place). An additional thought occurred to me about exceptionalism, and non-exceptionalism. Years ago, there was a great dispute over The Citadel, the military college in South Carolina: Should it admit women or not? And I remember something Pat Buchanan said. (How nice to be able to quote PJB favorably! Been a while, for me.) He said, approximately, Isn’t there room, in all this great land, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, encompassing hundreds of millions of people and endless schools, colleges, and universities, for one traditional, all-male military academy? Just one? Could not that contribute to our diversity, our “gorgeous mosaic”? I have used that line of argument in other areas of life. For example, in talking about the Metropolitan Opera and the constant attacks on its nature, I might say, Isn’t there room for just one home of traditional grand opera? Must every house, in all the world, go modernist, wearing the black turtleneck, the beret, and the little mustache? How about just one country that resists social democracy, that has an open economy, that prizes dynamism, opportunity, and growth? Must every democracy be Sweden? Can’t Reagan be Reagan, Poland be Poland, and America be America? (I realize this is getting tub-thumping.) All over the world, people say they are “born American.” Not everyone is, you know: America can be bruising and dislocating, heaven knows. The European social democracies can be very inviting and very comfortable. But people of a daring, self-reliant, and entrepreneurial nature have picked up and moved here for generations. If America loses it exceptionalism, where will they go? That is the theme of a letter I publish in my column today, from a reader in England. Oh, speaking of letters, I wanted to share this with you — just for the opening. In Impromptus, I talk about the “domestic Brezhnev Doctrine,” a phrase and concept from the Reagan years. It meant, “Once a federal program or agency comes in — the TVA, for example, or the Ag Department — it stays forever, no matter how life changes.” Anyway, my correspondent wanted to talk about Brezhnev. And he began, “Hi, Jay: I live in Moscow, though I’m a Reagan-adoring Frenchman (these things happen).” Told you it was an interesting opening. Could I sneak in one more letter, on something having nothing to do with the above topics? Reader writes,

Jay –
In today’s Impromptus, you write, “Take a letter from Beaumont, Texas (and does Beaumont have a beautiful mountain, as the name implies?).” Beaumont is on the Gulf coast of Texas — a place so flat that were it not for the natural curvature of the earth, one could stand on a two-story rooftop and see Houston, some 90 miles away. Nope, no mountains in Beaumont.

Got it.