According to The New York Times, a large-scale military parade is being planned for June 14 in the streets of Washington, D.C.—conveniently timed to coincide with Donald Trump’s 79th birthday. What a surprise for such a modest man…
A brief flashback to history: Roman Emperor Augustus is best known for founding the Roman Empire and transforming Rome from a republic into an imperial state. Strangely, it seems America may be undergoing a similar metamorphosis. This upcoming ceremony bears an uncanny and uncomfortable resemblance to the ancient Roman tradition of triumphal arches—monuments built to glorify emperors. Augustus himself decreed that only emperors were entitled to such triumphs.
This would-be “tradition” feels oddly reminiscent of the coronation of a British monarch—a concept that was once anathema on the American continent. It also calls to mind a fable by Jean de La Fontaine, etched into the memory of every French child:
« Et bonjour, Monsieur du Corbeau.
Que vous êtes joli ! que vous me semblez beau !
Sans mentir, si votre ramage
Se rapporte à votre plumage,
Vous êtes le Phénix des hôtes de ces bois. »
“And hello, Mr. Crow. How pretty you are! How handsome you seem to me! Without lying, if your song matches your plumage, you are the Phoenix of the inhabitants of these woods.”
So said the cunning Fox to the vain Crow, who, flattered and careless, dropped the cheese he held in his beak. For nothing delights the vain more than flattery—especially when it’s unearned.
Vain people tend to dominate the spotlight, forever recounting their achievements. But as Ambrose Bierce once observed:
“Hens do cackle loudest when nothing is vital in the eggs they have laid.”
And as Lord Chesterfield wisely advised:
“The only sure way of avoiding these evils [vanity and boasting] is never to speak of yourself at all. But when you are obliged to mention yourself, take care not to drop one word that can directly or indirectly be construed as fishing for applause.”
In contrast, modesty is a quiet strength—the ability to recognize one’s worth without seeking validation through spectacle or self-praise.
We already have one special day to commemorate the Armed Forces’ sacrifices, and it is November 11. Let’s stick to it!
Alain