The Dream: Sold American!

You likely don't know who  James Truslow Adams is but you likely know what he has added to our American lexicon. In 1931 he wrote "The Epic of America" where he coined the phrase "The American Dream" to define “a dream of a social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” 

Contrast this to the post-WWII definition which considered the economic boom that a quickly expanding economy was largely responsible for including the expansion of the middle class. Paul Jenkins writes in his essay "American Dream 1950s: Dissecting the Era of Optimism and Growth" that  "The 1950s in the United States saw remarkable shifts in society, influenced by a post-war population increase, evolving family structures, advances in education, and significant strides towards racial equality." Of course, the American Dream continues to evolve as the Wall Street Journal stated this year "Americans overwhelmingly desire all the traditional trappings of the American dream—owning a home, having a family, and looking forward to a comfortable retirement. But very few believe they can easily achieve it."

The American Dream which was defined originally as equality of opportunity to social attainment has evolved largely into a consumerist version of economic opportunity to essentially keep up with the Joneses (an expression worth learning the origin story). Certainly, 1931 was very different than 1951 and 2024, even more so. In 1931, we were at the height of the Great Depression, struggling to keep our nation from collapsing like the Weimer Republic did in Germany. For many people, the policies of the Hoover Administration had failed, and the success of FDR and the Democrats in 1932 and 1934 was giving a new foundation for Federally-funded national social programs necessary to jumpstart the flailing economy and raise families from the depths of the Depression, some of which are still with us today, such as the Social Security Administration. With WWII, the establishment of the military/industrial complex was necessitated and led to many jobs for women and minorities to stoke the war machine. By 1951, while the US was embroiled in the Korean Conflict, our economy was flying high with many women returning home from the workforce to create the largest new generation, the impact of which we still feel today--Baby Boomers. In the ever-expanding suburbia that was create largely from the GI Bill which provided 16.4 million WWII veterans access to low-interest ending programs for homes and education (though it was very much a flawed program through local control where blacks and other minorities were concerned). Never before had our government invested in building a robust, competitive workforce and the middle class became a fixture in American life. Nonetheless, the new American Dream was not color-blind,

Fast-forward to 2024 where young people currently doubt that they will ever have the life their parents and grandparents had access to. According to USA Facts, "the 60% of income earners between the top and bottom quintiles — commonly referred to as America’s middle class — have seen their share of wealth diminish since 1990. Over the past three decades, this group’s share of total wealth fell to 26% from 37%." Yet, many people identify as being middle class irrespective of their income. Both lower-income, working-class earners and top-earners self-identify as being in the middle class. I speculate that the American Dream is not dead, but as George Carlin famously said “...they call it the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” Essentially, the dream of America has always been aspirational. And, kind of like participation trophies for kids, if everyone wins, there are no losers. As long as we can dream of a better version of the United States, we can be assured that it will either happen for us or it won't. Either way, we are right. 

It seems that politics are driven by the bipolarity that we Americans accept regardless of our political leanings. If you want a nation proud of our economic prosperity or you want a nation proud of strides toward opportunity for all, you have got it. If you fear that we will not attain more prosperity or more opportunity, you also have that. We are a nation that waves our flag proudly a lot, and we are a nation that also flies it at half mast a lot. It is a functional democracy that allows us to dream of the America of our dreams. That is always what is at stake when we hold elections. The understanding of the American Dream can be shape-shifted by ideology. That ideology may not care if we ever have an election again if it fits a vision of an authoritarian/kleptocracy America. My hopes and actions are directed at keeping us from sinking into the stupor version of sleep of the American Dream that George Carlin warned us about and continue to aspire and to quote J.T. Adams, “dream of a better, richer and happier life for all our citizens of every rank.”

Don't Let Us Be Sick

 The late songwriter, Warren Zevon was on my mind yesterday, as I dreaded what I expected to be the darkest underbelly of politics on display in the CNN 'presidential' debate. Zevon wrote "Don't let us get sick, don't let us get old. Don't let us get stupid, all right? Just make us be brave and make us play nice and let us be together tonight." Anyone watching the debacle would be amazed that the usually curmudgeonly Zevon would be seen as the optimist in this unsettling setting. What I saw were two old men baring their teeth when this country likely needed them both to jointly agree to step aside due to apparent incapacitation and legal complications. Their joint belligerence and distaste toward each other would have been better served in a wrestling cage than as two trying to convince a skeptical nation that we would be served well by either of them. Add to it the nonsensical lies and self-serving rambling talking points; no one can say that it was time well spent.

I am done trying to defend to others that either party has the best interest of We the People in mind when they decide to cast their lot with these two old hickory nuts. Democracy is failing us at this moment if we can't stop this train from rolling into the station. I hope that clear-headed people on all sides are able to recognize the craziness of the moment and act on that information. Rage against the machine! Insist that the party conventions open themselves up to floor votes and put forward candidates that are reasonable or at least coherent. We have no other choice, if we hope to have a functioning and actually democratic country.

We can argue the relative merits of voting for the party over the candidate, but in the end, one of these men would be the leader and face of this country for the next four years and we would either be sweeping up after one of them or swept up in a net by one of them. Maybe we have a national COVID brain fog or something, but there is no healthy scenario that I can see if either Biden or especially Trump are sworn in again. As Zevon wrote, "I thought of my friends and the troubles they've had to keep me from thinking of mine." It is time to think about our friends. Please, don't let us be sick.

Hedging My Bet on Hope Exceeding the Sum of Our Fears

It is not always easy to be from Iowa. Our caucuses this year were a bust, our state leadership is atrocious, and we have far more pigs than people. That said, Iowans are just like you, although if you are not largely middle class, white, or older--you may tune this out now. But seriously.

Iowans are scared, they don't know what is happening to this country. Iowans love their kids and want them to have a secure life filled with opportunity, This is why it is so challenging when Iowans, like many Americans, continue to embrace the things that will likely make us less secure, and reduce opportunity in the future. For instance, we embrace ethanol and CAFOs--both are terrible uses of resources because of the carbon dioxide and methane they produce. We embrace a monoculture in our fields and have 2.5% forested lands in our state--once again not great for reducing the effects of global climate change. Our jobless rate is at an all-time low, but jobs are more likely to make Iowans less food secure, more in debt, and more likely to rely on private transit to get to work. Again all things that don't bode well

So why do we continue down this path of what looks a lot like self-destruction? I have two notions a) We are believers in our ability to engineer ourselves out of any and all problems we and/or nature creates. b) We are fundamentally greedy and don't really care about what happens next. I suppose I could add a c) option: We are both fundamentally greedy AND we believe in our ability to engineer ourselves out of (or into) anything. But the guiding light behind these theories is we do things out of fear. Whether it is the fear of messing things up for our progeny or fear of living in a hellscape that maybe is our fault, it is fear that drives this bus.

If we go by each case, our fear of not succeeding in being the rulers of our own destiny if we can't engineer ourselves out of the problems we face would tantamount to saying the American Dream is a lie. Well, maybe it is. Maybe the ideals of a democracy in which everyone wins if they work hard enough left out a few folks and we are now fearful that "they" want reparations? But, what if even that isn't enough or isn't actually what "they" want? What if our fear is that the meek will inherit the earth--and they actually do? First, they came for the billionaires and I did nothing...

In the second case, what if people actually are self-indulgent narcissists who care about no one but themselves and a handful of others? Why should we care if the oceans rise and people are displaced? It isn't my fault, why should I feel bad?  In this case, we fear what may be taken from us. All these things that we clawed our way forward to possess could as easily be taken from us in the form of taxes, tyranny, or economic downturn. Oh, and possible pandemic or alien invasion.

The third case is what I call the billionaire problem. Let's say you are a billionaire (go ahead imagine making $4,474,885 an hour like Jeff Bezos--let it soak in). Now imagine you are fearful the planet you live on might become uninhabitable in your lifetime (let's say like earth, right now). If you could create your own interplanetary escape plan, wouldn't you? And, if you could convince governments or investors that you'd cut them in, wouldn't that also be sweet? It's a win/win for both greed and engineering one's way out of a significant problem.

But, I am a faithful believer in actionable hope. It is my hope that, as we have shown in scenario after scenario, that we will do the best we can fo the most when we absolutely have to. We will recognize that we have to act in concert with others in the world, as we are doing right now with regard to world health around the Covid-19 virus. As we have seen in this outbreak, it is possible to spook the stock market, to spook our fellow human beings and yet, also to mount a worldwide public health campaign to reduce the risk of large-scale spreading and more deaths. Fear can serve a useful purpose, it can remind us of our commonalities and how intertwined we really are.

Turning or Tuning Out the Vote

At the risk of being sanctimonious, if you aren't planning to vote during the midterms, what is wrong with you? Literally thousands of Iowans and millions of others around the country will likely sit this election out just because they believe their vote doesn't matter or is being suppressed, that politicians are all crooks, that their vote is being manipulated, etc. Hogwash. Sadly, it means that others are doing their thinking for them. All those political strategists, lobbying efforts, PACs, etc. have targeted them as a demographic and through caterwauling web ads, tv spots, and campaign framed-messages convinced them that they would be suckers to vote (or to vote for their best interests). Add to that those nattering nabobs of negativity that are our friends and family who also reinforce that sentiment and give us comfort to do nothing. In a nutshell, that is what keeps generally decent people from voting.

Some will say, that is overly simplistic and say things like what about those who don't know enough about the candidates and their stances--do we really want them voting?" --Yes we do and clue, check-out Headcount for ways to self-inform about issues and candidates. Well, what about those who mean to but... (kids, work, illness)--surely you have compassion? No, I don't and a clue, vote early or absentee (check-out Vote.org to figure out how). Well, what about those who have committed a crime, should they vote? Yes, when they have served their time, they should automatically be restored to the voter rolls--no governor or panel should be needed--but, your vote can help get this done.

It is your right and privilege to vote or not vote, but ignorance or feeling minimalized are not justifiable reasons--just excuses. Reasons you should vote are numerous, but here are mine:

1. A vote is the oil that makes democracy run. Democracy is still an experimental form of governing. Voting is the mechanism that puts representatives to work for or against you. 
2. A vote is influence peddling. You likely don't have enough money to influence your representatives financially, so the least you can do is help elect the one who you feel will be less likely to screw you over for campaign cash.
3. A vote is a form of hope. You want your world to be better, your schools, neighborhood, state? A vote is for all those things.
4. A vote is a protest. You don't like what a party or candidate are doing, your vote for another party or candidate is your best way to show your discontent.
5. A vote is a voice. Your voice and many others add up to a public library being given the go ahead, a scoundrel given the boot, or a part of the Constitution being amended. 
6. A vote is change. Who really knows what the Founding Fathers (and Mothers) would think about the United States today? What is true is our votes create change through policy, law, and leadership.
7. A vote is the future. With what we hear about the effects of climate change, nukes, and other potentially life ending events and factors, our vote can change the course of humankind or speed our demise.
8. A vote is a choice. A vote says "I think A is better than B" and you have weighed the pros and cons and made a decision.
9. A vote is a responsibility. It is you contract with your neighbors, your fellow citizens and, to some extent, to the people of the world, that you understand that we all need to figure out a way to live with each and thrive together. You vote says you understand that id being responsible.
10. A vote is a connection. The issues, whether they be local, state, or national will impact you and others in good and bad ways. Your vote connects you to the person who is representing you and allows you to petition them when you are aggrieved and encourage them when you want them to do more.
11. A vote is a correction. History tells us that we don't always get it right the first time. A vote is a way to repeal and replace solutions with better ones. 

Tune out or turn out, those are the only choices. How will you vote?

Dangerous Politics

The toll of politics is on my mind today. County Supervisor Kurt Friese, one of the biggest hearted people I have known passed away on Friday and that made many of us locally take a collective breath as we felt the heaviness of that loss. However, time waits for no one and politics has an even shorter timetable with an election a week away from now. And to that point. With no less than three mass killings that were based on hatred and rage because of the victims color or religion, can we have a long-term moratorium on race baiting and religious intolerance? From the President on down, many of us have shown a great deal of intolerance of others, but some have seen it as an opportunity to unleash their brand of hatred in support of some ideal that they hold. No holds barred.

Enough is enough! If this nation should fissure, it will not be by accident. There are political motives in play that have been harnessed to to put us at each others' throats. And yet, it is so preventable, if we decline to be played for political gain. Refuse to be used as a photo opportunity or to lend credibility to the party or person who converts your presence as a referendum on their ideas and methods. In other words, don't be played a fool or turned into a pawn. Be brave enough to call BS when you know you are being fed it.

This is not to say that you should not be involved in politics. This is to say, be involved in a better more humanistic-style of politics. One that, as Kurt did, put service ahead of agenda. The only politics that is worth spit is that which attends to the needs of people and uses political movement toward that end. People need jobs? Great work on that, but not by telling lies about other people. Health care needs to be fixed? Great, work on it, but not by robbing Peter to pay Paul. It is clear that the scales of justice and economics are badly out of balance. Let's use the tools of government to right the wrongs and even out the scales, but not through scapegoating our fellow human beings.

An action you can take right now is to vote for people who are more aligned with justice and democracy. Ask yourself, whose policies make things better for more people than a relative few? Also ask yourself: what is gained by my hatred or intolerance of any other human being? I say that fear for fear sake benefits no one but those who invoke it. Work backwards, who is trying to instill fear in you? Vote against that agenda. 

What Is at Stake in the Midterms

With November 6th rapidly approaching, it is a good time to walk away from the noise and conflation and media spin and talk about what is going on in our country and how voters make a difference. Currently, unemployment has decreased and more people are working. In a normal cycle, that would bode well for the incumbents. However, with healthcare expenses, property taxes, inflation and other factors, workers are not seeing the benefits of income tax cuts. With Congress looking to change Social Security and public healthcare in ways that are not looking good for those who need them, social insecurity seems to be the mantra of the day. Add to this the ongoing struggle of immigrants and asylum seekers, a military whose actions are largely stealth operations with lack of media coverage, a leader who is arguably the most divisive of any to date, and it leaves a lot of room for improvement.

On the other hand, what does the other side offer?

According to The Hill

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said recently he’d “focus like a laser on job creation, infrastructure and skills training investment.”
Rep. Joseph Crowley (N.Y.), chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said he’d like to prioritize health-care access, affordable college tuition and oversight of the Trump administration.
Rep. Linda Sánchez (Calif.), vice chairman of the Democratic Caucus, added another item to the list: retirement security.
And Pelosi on Tuesday named four items on her wish list: infrastructure, campaign finance reform, tougher gun restrictions and help for the Dreamers — immigrants brought to the country illegally when they were children. She noted that Democrats have been urging Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) to take up all those issues before the elections.
“We’d be hard put to call on the Speaker to do it, and then when we win, not do it,” Pelosi said.

A reasonable question to ask is what about the things that matter to younger and poorer voters? Certainly skills training and affordable college tuition are helpful (and not on the other side's agenda). What about paid family leave, childcare supports, supports for nutrition programs and addressing the environment and climate change? What about reforming the criminal justice system, addressing sensible drug policy? These are important issues for a group of voters who may not show up, if they don't see the benefit directly to them.

People who follow politics understand that it is the down the ticket races that are super important because if the Republican agenda keeps growing at the state level, more and more people will feel the tightening of its grip on their personal choices, on their wallets, and the safety net that has served generations well since the Great Depression. But the average voter  does not vote big picture.

The cult of personality is a funny thing. Despite the divisiveness of Trump, he is not running at this time and voters who support him are going to support whoever makes sense to them. If the Blue Wave turns into washout, it will likely be because the message missed a really important point: give the people what they want and, more importantly, what they need.

The Problem with Populism or Why the Mob Always Rules

“A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine.” ― Thomas Jefferson

Mob Rule: "control of a political situation by those outside the conventional or lawful realm, typically involving violence and intimidation."

I am a populist with a Progressive bent. I happen to think that The People (aka the Mob) are better served by socialist democratic tendencies than with conservative capitalistic ones. Donald Trump recently said “The Democrats are willing to do anything, to hurt anyone, to get the power they so desperately crave"  in Minnesota last week. He added, “They want to destroy.” Jenny Beth Martin of the Tea Party's Patriot Citizens Fund said, “Do I want to live in a nation besieged by left wing political violence and mob rule, or a nation where we are all protected by the Constitution and the rule of law?” in an op-ed in The Hill. 

If you take either of these statements seriously, you have to ignore the actions like the Tea Party and Nationalistic conservative groups, like the one that marched on Charlottesville (where a neo-Nazi ran over a anti-Nazi marcher by driving backwards through the crowd). So, point one, you can't be against the very thing you are for and be seen as credible.

In our country, the mob is ruled by elected officials who try their best to game the system in their direction. The good thing about a voting public is that they can reverse course by voting. That is not to say all things can be changed by elections. For instance, as long as Supreme court justices have lifelong appointments, their rulings can literally cripple one type of political ideology and make it possible for another to rule the roost. One of the reasons that the conservative movement has been so focused on the Supreme Court is that they know things like the Voter's Right Act has not helped their cause. Already voters in North Dakota have seen the harm to voters who have no street address (Native Americans no less).

So the mob rules all the time. As political leaders roil their base and elect people who march in step, the mob decides which way the country will go politically. The problem with populism is the people and their susceptibility to charlatans bearing ideology.
For democracy to be truly broken, all three branches of the government have to be aligned and the ability of the common voter to make a change via the vote made obsolete. If anyone should be worried about mob rule, it is the mob itself.With the mob actually propping up a leader who lies to them constantly and likens authoritarian rule to being a good businessman, it is right that other people would be trying their best to beat back that threat.
Fear not the mob, but fear the mob rulers.