A Slight Political Rant

I completely understand that reasonable people can disagree about the proper goals of government and how to get those goals promoted.  I have absolutely no problem with rational and thoughtful debate, and I understand that things can get emotional and intense.

For example, I am not a general fan of US Republican ideology.  The idea that corporations can be trusted to self-regulate always seems to be disproved by what they actually do.  The idea that scientists are making false claims about the climate, the safety of water and food, and the proper way to rehabiliate prisoners (among many issues) seems to me to be a matter of wishing vs reality.  And all evidence I see suggests that giving money to the rich does not result in "trickle-down" economics.

And I might naturally be one of them.  I'm an "older white male with accumulated self-earned assets who worked hard, invested in the stock market, and believes that "success" is generally self-driven". 

So why am I not a Republican?  Because I had advantages many others did not.  And because a functional democracy has to allow social and economic mobilty.

For starters, let's just say that I had middle class parents who could live in a safe suburban neighborhood, I attended a safe suburban school, and I had safe suburban friends, all of whom were "just like me".  Of my senior high school class of 254 students, only 4 did not graduate and THAT was actually a sort of scandal.  There were some "minority students" in the school, but my recollection was that they were treated the same as the the rest of us (they might disagree), but even they were from middle class professional families and living in the same neighborhoods.  Their parents attended the same neighborhood parties.

I was probably about 16 when I discovered that there was another high school in town (when I got my learner's permit and drove around town.  It was decrepit.  It looked like a prison (barred windows - ours opened), had a small playground with rough ground and no grass - ours was a couple acres and had actual grass),  our school was neat and clean on the outside - that one was spray painted with words I didn't even know.

I asked my parents about it.  They said it was a poor school because the parents of the kids who went there were poor and couldn't donate much to their school.  But they also said it was about racism, politics, and that they routinely voted for town officials who promised to fix those things but those people never got elected.

You do have to understand that, in the 1960s, kids even at 16 years old were not so much exposed to reality outside their neighborhoods.  We didn't have much on TV to watch other than national news, sitcoms and western show, and cartoons.  We watched Walter Chronkite, Bonanza, Disney, and The Flintstones.

I went to school, did my assigned homework, pulled weeds in the garden, helped my Dad around the yard, learned to play golf as Dad's caddy, played some football and board games with friends, and that was about IT!

Two years later and I was thrown into college at the safe State University.  I was supposed to learn some academic skill, get a good job, and carry on the White European tradition.  I went to college in 1968, and The Vietnam War got in the way.  I started to learn things I wasn't supposed to learn. 

I learned about the treatment about minorities.  I learned about inequities.  I learned that not all was fair.  I learned that minority students faced difficulties I did not. 

And the Vietnam War was bad, but worse for minority soldiers than white soldiers.  They didn't get promoted as readily, so they were on the front lines more often.  When they came home wounded, they didn't get the same treatment.

And to be honest here, I was never in Vietnam.  My college deferment protected me until the government had that one massive lottery and I dropped my college deferment and I drew a number never called.  If my number had come up, I would have gone, and I would probably be a very different person than I am today.  But my number wasn't called.

So I stayed in college and started thinking about things.  I changed my major from mechanicl engineering to political science and started studying people and society and how "it all worked".  I had been vaguely Progressive Republican and changed to Progressive Democrat.   There is a difference. 

The former has a "noblesse oblige"aspect of helping those lesser than you; the latter has more of a "we are all equal so help those who need help".  I fail sometimes in attitude sometimes, but I keep in mind that a good start in life helps make a better future for most people. 

I know too many people who think that skin color somehow implies ability.  I know why skin varies and it is just a general adaptation to sunlight exposure.  There is a reason why Scandinavians have whiter skin than Southern Europeans and them being lighter than Africans.  It has nothing to do with intelligence or ability.  It has everything to do with history and geographical advantages. 

Read 'Guns, Germs, and Steel' sometime.  It will open your eyes.

Meanwhile, for the rest of my life after college, I have supported ideas to make the cultural and financial differences of minorities fairer. 

It's why I am a Democrat now.  Things have to become fairer.  That is basically the whole premise of a fair society.  I cannot not support the "Me First" attitude of the Republicans.  And to be honest, I think some Democrats go overboard.  But given 10 issues, I will probably agree with the Democrats on 8.

OK, I've had my say on the subject.