“Every once in awhile. Somewhere in the world. Humanity goes on trial. And integrity. And decency. Every once in awhile, common folks get called on to give the report card for the human race.
Please Copy the URL and Share this page,
https://americanlandscapegallery.com/the-american-journey-video
The backroad to St. Anthony, Minnesota
All photography ©2024 Richard Olsenius
Nebraska ranch family
Dressing for the morning cold, Wyoming
American Journey is a visual anthem, a poem to rural America, the values that once grounded it and the changes in those values brought on by Donald Trump and his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement.
It seeks to remind us of a time when we had less division and more common ground, like respect for the law and support for the men and women who defend our country. It was developed in response to Donald Trump’s comments about shooting a person on Fifth Avenue and not losing a vote, his blaming the “rigged system” for his 34 felony counts, and lastly his disrespectful comments about veterans, including his infamous insult that “John McCane wasn’t a hero, he was a hero because he was captured.” “(I like people that weren’t captured.”) In my opinion, this comment alone made Donald Trump unworthy to be Commander-in-Chief.
Serving up breakfast Torrington, Wyoming
Wyoming ranch family
Heading home after feeding the cattle, Wyoming
1st cutting of alfalfa, central Minnesota
Family reunion on a Pelican Lake, St. Anna, MN
With this video, I hope that viewers will take a moment to think about how richly blessed our nation is because of our laws and leadership, and because so many valiant men and women put their lives on the line to defend our nation and our freedoms. Surely we can all agree on these norms and help unite, rather than divide this country.
St Wendel Cemetery, Minnesota
Waiting for the Sunday ride
A Changing Social Landscape
Donald Trump, a cult-like political figure has given license to people to break longstanding social norms. These social norms like civility and respect for the law, helped to bond communities over differences of opinion, ethnicity, and politics.
As the media and political pundits opine on the causes of this divide, I have wondered if there aren’t a couple norms that people of all political persuasions can agree upon; one of them being that we are not above the law, and the other being respect for the men and women who serve in the armed forces.
2nd cutting of Alfalfa
