What a statue in Greece taught me about America

I thought I knew our place in the world.

Then, we traveled through the Mediterranean from Barcelona to Istanbul.

What I learned: I have so much more to learn.

In Athens, a young man pulled me towards a statue.

I stared.

It looked like President Harry Truman.  It was. In Athens, Greece. The birthplace of democracy.

I have lived in America my entire life. I have been to the Truman Presidential Library. There is a statue of Truman there. The only one I have ever seen.And, there is one in Greece. Really, Greece.  None in Montana.

My Greek friend explained: After World War II, millions were starving. The economy was destroyed. Truman stepped up. It was called “The Marshall Plan,” by most people —  officially, though, “the European Recovery Program.”

George C. Marshall gave the commencement speech at Harvard. He proclaimed that economic stability was the foundation of peace.  He declared that our policy was against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos.

Harry Truman and the United States stepped up, and he embraced the Marshall Plan.

The U.S. built a coalition of 16 Western European nations that provided billions of dollars of food, fuel, raw materials, and more to advance the recovery of Europe from the war.

This was pure humanitarian aid. But, it was also soft diplomacy.

It helped contain the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It created loyal trading partners for U. S. industry. It promoted political stability. It created generational relationships between freedom loving countries.

So, Greece erected a statue of President Harry Truman.

My friend explained, “My father was one of those starving people who were saved by the Marshall Plan. Saved by America.”

This was personal. America matters to him. In ways that I couldn’t even imagine.

Then, there was a period of silence.

Words that  couldn’t be spoken between a tourist and a guide.

A pregnant pause.

Unspoken was the United States elimination of USAID.

The Marshall Plan for Africa. Killed. Eliminated. HIV treatment and prevention as well as childhood immunizations and medicine.  And, so much more.

President Donald J. Trump proclaimed that there was fraud.

No.

No study. No evidence. No report. No Congressional investigation.

Just a Presidential tweet.

If you tell a lie often enough,  people will believe it.  If Fox “reports” it.  People will believe it. Alternative facts.  Lies.  Damn lies.

The consequences are easy to see.

So far: More than 500,000 children – dead. Nearly 1 million people – dead.   By 2030 – it is projected more than 14.1 million will be dead.  Because a tweet and a lie cancelled Congressionally approved and funded programs.

As we stared at the statue of Truman, the unsaid weighed heavy upon this celebration of America.

America saved Europe and the world. Blood spilled. Money invested. Lives saved. What once was, is no longer today.

Why not Africa?

Europe was white. Africa is not.

Has America’s racist past become its present and future?

Your vote and your decisions in 2026 will decide.

We were saving the lives of millions for pennies per person. And we stopped. Programs cancelled.

Funds appropriated by Congress cancelled by a Presidential tweet. And, still, there is no evidence of fraud.

USAID was not perfect. Od course, programs can always be improved. But, it saved millions of lives. And, like the Marshall Plan, it was “soft diplomacy” that made America and the world safer, better and more secure. It built relationships and futures.

And, now where are we?

Sen. Steve Daines? Silent.

Sen. Tim Sheehy? Silent.

Rep. Troy Downing? Silent.

Rep. Ryan Zinke? Silent.

People are dying by the millions, and our representatives are silent, even though they are all self-proclaimed Christians.

Not one of Montana’s members of Congress is Harry Truman.

Why?

Because they are afraid to call a Trump tweet a lie. Because they lack the integrity and leadership to speak truth to evil. Because they are more interested in keeping their jobs than they are in actually doing their jobs.

This young man in Greece stood with me in front of the statue of Truman.

With undeserved empathy, he tenderly told me, “We know that the United States is going through a tough time.”

He counseled, “Sometimes, you just need better people.”

Yes, we do.  We need better people.

I went to Greece.  And, I learned about America: What we were and what we have become, as well as the failures of our present administration.

Whether you are a Republican, a Democrat, a Libertarian, or an Independent, we need change.

We need better people.

We need another Harry Truman.

Please help us to become better people.

The world is counting on us.

And, their future is our future.