Some of you “corrected” me for what I said in last Sunday’s post (Education Matters). It wasn’t for my praise of education. It was for my implication that a shortage of “educated people” doomed Kamala Harris’s bid for the presidency, as if that were a primary reason.
It wasn’t.
As it turns out, many educated people weighed policy differences, considered the likely fate of the United States under each candidate, and voted for Donald Trump. And it wasn’t just educated people who weighed the differences. A large swath of working-class people did too.
I’ve read the autopsies. The Democratic Party abandoned the workers. That can’t be right! I’ve reviewed the economic statistics. They’re solid.
So I called a friend who is a blue collar Democrat.
Hey, man, what’s up with you working-class people voting for Trump? Biden looked after you guys. He brought back manufacturing, repaired infrastructure, juiced the economy, lowered unemployment, and stood with the unions. You don’t think the Democratic Party abandoned you, do you?
Actually “abandoned” is too mild a word, he replied. The Democratic Party abused us. Last minute gestures weren’t enough. It was too little, too late.
Oh, give me a break. How was it too late?
Well, it’s like a husband trying to win back a wife he’s badly abused for years. So he buys her a necklace to fix things.
Oh, come on. How were you abused?
You really don’t know?
Clinton enacted NAFTA. My father and many of his friends lost their jobs. They were angry. A sea of resentment formed. Obama bailed out Wall Street and left us underwater. More anger. The sea rose. Biden kept the schools shut too long during the pandemic. Our kids are a mess. And then on top of all that, the price of food, gas, and services soared.
Oh yeah? Well, what’s the price of bread compared with freedom and democracy?
Are you serious?
Look, there was a roiling sea of resentment in this country, and it crashed over the sea wall. That’s all. You see Trump as a vile PERSON. And he is. But we see him as a useful THING. He makes the elite angry. Payback, baby. And that makes us happy.
I get it. But, still, it makes me sad. Anger blinded you, my friend. You’re going to regret your choice.
Perhaps. But for now I feel great.
FINIS
(I’m done with this subject.)
* * *
JOIN ME FOR A BOOK SIGNING.
Sunday, December 1 at 2:00 p.m. Featuring music by Jade, Eldred & Ed. The Train Station, 100 Audrey Egle Dr., Shepherdstown, WV.
Friday, December 13, 6:00-8:00 p.m. Four Seasons Books, 114 W. German St., Shepherdstown, WV.
Copies available now ($19.95) at Four Seasons Books. 304-876-3489 or fourseasonsbooks.com
WARNING: Do not purchase Kindle ebook version. Text is defective. Will let you know when that issue is resolved.
