For me, one of the great advantages of observing the Sabbath and Jewish holidays is the sense of perspective—when you pull back for a day or so and stop digesting the up-to-the-minute media, and think about things that are important, rather than urgent.

  I enjoyed that experience over the past two days (Wednesday and Thursday) while observing the Jewish holiday of Shavuos (Pentecost) – spending time with my family and friends, eating festive meals, going to services, participating in all night Bible study, and going for a long walk (nearly thirty miles) during the last hours of the holiday on Thursday. As my listeners may have noticed, on Wednesday and Thursday we played pre-recorded hours—some of them brand new, and prepared for this occasion.

  In any event, this sort of removal from the ongoing hysteria and combat and emergencies of talk radio (which I do love, by the way) helped nourish my sense of well-being and optimism about our country, even with the problems and challenges and bitter controversies we face.

  I’ve also collected a few amazing, even shocking statistics that ought to give some pause to the doom-and-gloom/sky-is-falling crowd. Americans – nearly all of us – remain the luckiest people on earth, and there’s reason to celebrate what’s happened in our country over the last five or ten years, rather than complaining about it constantly and endlessly.

  Consider the following stunning items of data, all culled from reliable and authoritative sources:

n      Americans at every income level earned far more in 2005 (the last year for which data are available) than in 1991, but the group in the population with greatest surge in income (adjusted for inflation, and including government benefits) was the poorest group. Among the lowest 20% of the population in terms of household earnings, income growth was a stunning 78% (according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget office) or the equivalent of more than 5% per year. Even the slowest growth of all income groups – the middle 20% of household income-- saw an inflation-adjusted income rise of 18%, for an increase in purchasing power of more than $8,500 per year. The claim that Americans are suffering, with fewer choices and less money than ever,  is disproven by the dramatic increases for every segment of the public.

-         Another indication of the nation’s rising wealth comes from the National Association of Homebuilders, which reports that the houses we occupy are much bigger than ever before – despite the decreasein family size. In 2005, the average new home amounted to 2,434 square feet – an increase of more than 20% (or 400 square feet) since 1990. In 1990, less than one in six US homes had four bedrooms or more; today, more than one-in-five of us live in houses that large.

-         Meanwhile, the New York Times Magazine offered a special report on aging Baby Boomers, describing a group of remarkably fortunate, contented, prosperous and educated Americans. For instance in 1967, only 8% of 50 year olds had completed four year college. Today, almost four times as many (31%) have completed college or university. In 1967, only 49% of 50 year olds had completed high school—but today (2007) the number is a dazzling 91%. Meanwhile, a startling 92% of Americans say their relationship with their partner is “emotionally satisfying” – one of the highest figures for any nation. Among the French (supposedly the experts on Amour) the number is a mere 81%.

-          I could go on, and will probably cover some additional indications of American progress and privilege on my radio show tomorrow (Friday).

But the point remains unassailable, I believe: if you gain a bit of perspective, looking past the viciousness and desperation in our current discourse, we remain the most fortunate nation and the most fortunate citizens in the whole, long history of humanity.

God bless America.