Politics

Is Ohio A Cesspool Of Hate, Fear And Ignorance?

Posted on August 30, 2017 by CharlieClaywell

Steve Newman, a Clermont County native, gained fame for walking the globe between 1983 and 1987. He details the trek in Worldwalker. Newman picked a good time to walk, Ohio’s unemployment rate in 1983 was 12 percent. Ronald Reagan was two years into his first term as president.

Roughly a week after Charlottesville happened, resulting in the death of Heather Heyer, my wife, dog (Versa) and I spent the weekend hiking in a Ohio state park in Clermont County. As we traipsed through the woods we were not disappointed, spotting deer — including a large buck that ran across the trail five yards in front of us — a gaggle of turkeys and two water fowl I’ve never seen (possibly King Rails).

On Saturday evening as we read inside our tent before falling asleep — the calm and quiet of the evening was interrupted by a loud truck barreling down the main entrance with its occupants yelling ‘white power.’

As the rebel yell pierced the night, it was a sign of where we are as a nation. Current polls suggest 65 percent of Americans believe hate and prejudice have increased since the November, 2016 election.

Childhood Friends, Family

We have 35 hate groups in Ohio — ninth in the nation. The man accused in Heyer’s death (James Fields) is, of course, from Ohio as is Daniel Borden, accused in the racially motivated beating of DeAndre Harris.

When I browse Facebook it’s easy to understand how we arrived at this place. In my part of the world, and Borden lives about 30 minutes south of me, fear and ignorance are the foundation too many build their worldview on. For example, a childhood friend, who attended the same church I did, posted a meme from an organization that views liberals, like myself, with disdain. The site revels in dividing the country into red versus blue — with the reds being the ‘good guys.’

One of their memes, promoting a odd-looking wrist decoration, says:

Send the liberals running for the hills with our handmade Six Shooter Leather bullet bracelet.

I’m not sure what ‘fearful’ liberals they are targeting with the text because I would be more apt to mock an individual childish enough to wear such a ridiculous looking bracelet — a leather bracelet designed to hold six bullets. But, I do wonder how someone taught the same brand of Christianity as me arrived at a place in midlife where they view the rhetoric as healthy or sensible.

How did they get to the point that threatening — or implying violence — toward a fellow citizen feels natural, Christian, American or humane? Do they live in a constant state of fear, convinced that someone, like myself, is hell bent on destroying them or the country? What information does one have to consume — and how long must they consume it — before they feel this type of statement is normal (let alone ‘Christlike’).

Another individual posted a ‘I’m proud to be white,’ meme apparently oblivious to the atrocities committed by our race. This particular individual also posts a lot of Native American ‘wisdom’ memes making me wonder if they have read any American history.

History Is Not Holy

My first realization that the past is a toolbox and not a pedestal came while I was researching my paternal line. I was looking into the life of Jesse Claywell, a War of 1812 veteran, who also served in the Black Hawk War (Illinois). As I researched the Black Hawk War, I came to understand three things about the white settlers that fought in it (including Jesse Claywell).

  1. They were thieves. They willfully stole the property of Native Americans.
  2. They were cowards. In the first ‘act of war’ the white settlers, significantly outnumbering the Indians, retreated.
  3. They were murderers. After successfully driving the Indians out of the region, they trapped a handful of escaping women, children and elderly crossing the Mississippi River. The white soldiers engaged in a ‘turkey shoot’ shooting the retreating Indians in the back.

Not much to revel in if you’re proud of simply ‘bein’ white.’

Let Freedom Ring

A ‘persecution complex’ meme loses some of its momentum when Christian is misspelled. But one local gatekeeper is convinced that the struggle is real.

Just a couple blocks from my home, the Confederate flag flies in front of two houses. This is in Ohio, a state that was in the Union, a state that lost more than 35,000 men to the war. It is the state that produced Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman.

I’m doubting the owners of the Confederate flags know their state’s role in the Civil War. They are undoubtedly more interested in ‘their right’ to fly the flag, than in Ohio’s history. Preble County has a significant population with ties to Kentucky and Tennessee, so I’ll let Tennessee comedian Trae Crowder set the record straight on the flag. In his book, Liberal Rednecks — written with fellow comedians Corey Ryan Forrester and Drew Morgan — Crowder says,

The flag issue (unlike the flag’s defenders) is a little more nuanced than you might think at first, but, regardless, the flag is done. There’s no getting it back. There’s no repairing its image. It’s irredeemable. Any possibility of the flag ever being seen as a benign symbol of regional pride vanished forever on June 17, 2015, the day of the hate-fueled massacre at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina.

Political Hate

Some of the hate, though, is being pushed down into our society. Members of the Trump team have definitely validated it. Recently, political operative Roger Stone, a Trump confidante and champion, went after Senator John McCain on Twitter after McCain denounced Trump’s decision to pardon sheriff Joe Arpaio. Stone said,

Karma about to get you, John McCain, and you will burn in hell for all eternity.

Stone who, like Jim Bakker, said a civil war would occur — and implied that members of Congress lives would be at risk — if Trump was impeached, has a long history of unsavory tactics.

But it is the words of support from evangelicals I grew up with that I find even more troubling. I expect Stone to be an evil POS, but Christians are applauding Trump’s decision to pardon a man who oversaw ‘Tent Camps.’ One hundred and sixty people died in those camps.

One evangelical, commenting on Arpaio’s pardon (and not the deaths), wrote:

Illegals aren’t American citizens. I am very happy about this!

The comment makes me wonder if I was given a alternative version of the Bible to read when we attended church together. The statement, at the very least, puts an ill-conceived national interest over a humanitarian one. My inner cynic finds the statement completely understandable had a politician said it. I understand why Trump pardoned ‘Sheriff Joe’ — it’s cronyism 101. They are fellow ‘birthers.’

But, it’s an unfathomable position for a person who follows ‘the Prince of Peace.’

Afterthought

After browsing Facebook the past couple of weeks, I do understand Gandhi’s viewpoint on Christianity. He said,

I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.

Categories: Life In A Red State, maga, My America, Politics, Preble County, Understanding Trump Counties

‘Giant of the Senate’ Infuses Hope, Humor Into Our Collective Political Nightmare

Posted on August 25, 2017 by CharlieClaywell

Al Franken, author of Al Franken, Giant of the Senate, is currently serving his second term as U.S. Senator from Minnesota. He is a multi-talented man who entered politics in 2008 after more than 30 years as a satirical writer and comedian.

This is his seventh book.

In Giant, Franken does the impossible — he turns our current political mess into an enjoyable story — one that even offers some glimmers of hope. This is especially true in the way he ends the book — written after Trump’s inauguration and Trump’s slew of race-baiting and immigrant-hating comments. Franken tells the story of some of the Somali refugees that reside in Minnesota — showing how they easily assimilated into the various communities, bringing with them a strong desire to thrive.

But, before the Somali stories of hope (and others sprinkled throughout the book), Franken offers a very realistic view of what its like to be a U.S. Senator. He details his recount in 2008, the money-grubbing members of Congress do to remain in office, and the various tactics he used on the campaign trail to throw off the GOP tracker.

The book, though, also shows the difficulty legislators face if they truly want to do their job and legislate. One telling example was his desire, after meeting with a vet suffering from PTSD, to get more service dogs paired with veterans. Franken, after researching the concept (or as he will readily admit, reading the research provided by his staff) sponsors a bill to fund broader research. Although the bill was passed relatively quickly in his political career, the research is just now being conducted because of all the various agencies involved and some false starts when the project launched.

All Those Liars

Franken, who made a name for himself before entering politics by taking on GOP politicians, writing books making fun of Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly and George W. Bush, had to put his humor on hold when he entered the Senate. And, his approach in politics, for the most part, is considerably different than his comedy. It’s more workhorse and less showboat. But, that does not mean he shies away from calling out the worst of the political bunch — like Ted Cruz and other members of the Tea Party.

He reserves some very good one-liners for them.

Big Ideas

Franken, a very well read Harvard graduate, is a deep thinker and strategist. Although Giant is an easy read, Franken does explain, in depth, some of the complicated programs — like the Affordable Care Act — with enough detail that a lay person can understand the logic of the legislation.

But one of the concepts that resonated with me was not Franken’s — but rather a writer he quotes, Jonathon Rauch.

Writing about our current political mess, Rauch states that many Americans just do not get politics and, in an effort to understand it, lump all politicians into the same class — presuming that the fault in Washington is spread out evenly between parties. Rauch calls these people ‘politiphobes.’ And, Franken, quoting Rauch writes,

They see the contentious give-and-take of politics as distasteful. Specifically they believe that obvious, commonsense solutions to the country’s problems are out there for the plucking. The reason these obvious solutions are not enacted is that politicians are corrupt, or self-interested or addicted to unnecessary partisan feuding.

But as Franken explains, folks did not come to this position without assistance — and he is more than willing to explain who created the perception.

Rated: 5 out of 5. This is a very readable — and fun to read — book. It could serve as an entry-level book to those wanting to better understand our political system.

Categories: Books I have read, Politics

Posting, Sharing Facebook Memes Not Solving Any Problems

Posted on August 5, 2017 by CharlieClaywell

Trump, the man who gave up his billionaire lifestyle to be humiliated and ridiculed and slandered in order to save the American people — post on Preble County’s Republican Facebook page.

Last fall my wife and I took up a new hobby — hiking and camping. We began this new chapter in our life in Hocking Hills, Ohio and have, in the past nine months or so, hiked several of Ohio’s state parks as well as along the Niagara River in New York.

Versa and I checking out an Ohio hiking trail.

As an introvert, hiking is a natural fit and I would describe a perfect day as one that includes a 10-15 mile hike with my dog, watching her chase wildlife, and seeing the sheer joy the simplest of moments bring my faithful sidekick.

It’s relaxing.

But, the unintended byproduct of hiking is my exposure to the reality that there is no ‘Ohio miracle.’ This is true along much of Ohio’s southwestern portion where I live and to the east where I hike.

Small Towns, Small Dreams

As I drive through these small Ohio towns heading to my hiking destinations many look like mine — with their gutted downtown regions filled with a handful of establishments that cater to the impoverished — tattoo parlors, vape shops, dollar stores, satellite churches — and empty storefronts.

I assess these towns and mine by looking at four things: the library, the post office, amenities and billboards. In impoverished regions libraries and post offices are neglected, amenities are rare or non-existent and the public service announcements reveal the town’s problems. (Recent PSA signs in Preble County show we’re trying to convince people not to smoke if pregnant.)

Billboards also tell a community’s religious flavor. Those traveling south through Preble County on U.S. 127 will be reminded to ‘repent’ if they want to be saved — and to ‘Stand with Israel.’

Who’s Minding The Store?

Screenshot from Preble County GOP Facebook page.

I also glance at the political social media page in the counties I visit to see if the public interacts with its political leaders. When I visit the Preble County Republican Facebook page, I notice less than 500 people follow it. We are a county of 40,000 residents with about 11,000 registered Republicans.

Social media memes also indicate local ideology. On the Preble County page I learn that — despite our small-government mentality — we need a political savior.

I Need A Hero

I read the local newspaper, occasionally listen to the audio of the Board of Commissioners meetings, comb through police reports, but this year I intentionally sought out a different audience to better understand my community. I took a job that put me shoulder-to-shoulder with community members who, for a variety of reasons, are ‘down on their luck.’

As I interact with this broader base of citizens, I’m seeking answers for our collective demise trying to comprehend our entrenched poverty. It’s an economic decline that coincidentally followed my lifespan since my father moved the family here during Preble’s financial peak.

As I observe and research, I also ask questions.

I want to know, for example, how a county that had $1.9 million dollars in new construction in 1969 ($12.6 million in today’s dollars) has become an entity where the ‘construction fee’ was recently increased (by a 2-1 vote) in a effort to offset a line item deficit. Based on the dissenting opinion, the change may be ineffective — and one of the reasons given for the increase — rising gas prices seems incorrect since gas is cheaper today than in 2006, the last time the fee was increased.

Most importantly, though, it’s a decision that may stall our (slowly) returning construction industry.

How did we go from ‘boom to bust’ in a generation or two?

A Disappointing Approach To Problem Solving, Humor

Screenshot from Preble County GOP Facebook page.

I never intended to be interested in politics. I prefer hiking, it’s more serene.  But as an accidental political news junkie I now believe, much more strongly than before, in a bi-partisan approach to running the country or a county. Based on news clipping, the bipartisan era left Preble County during the Reagan years. From the 1980s on most of our county offices have been filled by GOP candidates who ran unopposed.

This lack of an opposing viewpoint moved us further to the Right.

In the past three decades the local GOP’s shift can be seen in how we treat our children. In the 1970s members of the Board of Commissioners raved about the new orphanage, colloquially known as the Children’s Home, as one of their greatest achievements.

About 30 years later, by a 2-1 vote, the board voted to shutter it under a rallying cry of fiscal responsibility and an overreliance on verbiage (‘there’s no orphans in the orphanage’) costing us 11 local jobs.

Today some board members can be heard during public meetings adding up the dollar amount the county spends to place our children in agencies outside the county.

We aren’t cheering anymore — apparently the kids are costing us $500,000 annually.

The Truth Will Set You Free

I have thick skin, and I’m okay with opposing viewpoints, but when I look at the local GOP Facebook page, the posts intrigue me. Some show a lack of political literacy. For example, the quote from Teddy Roosevelt, is pulled out of its historical context, naively suggesting that today’s terms of liberal and conservative have the same meaning as they did a century ago.

Although Roosevelt was a Republican, his views more closely aligned with today’s Democrat party — he ‘took on’ business and believed that government action was required to keep the economic playing field level. He also ran as an independent for the Progressive Party (taking a literal bullet on the campaign trail) and his political position was center-left. Roosevelt’s Progressive Party called for the ‘direct election of United States Senators by the people’ something Trump wants reversed.

Since Roosevelt is more closely aligned to liberalism in today’s definition of the term, it is also possible to interpret his words (like most quotes) deeper than the surface level (i.e. saying the truth — what is ‘really happening’ in a society — will anger a liberal because they will perceive it as unjust.)

When I came across the ‘cry baby’ graphic, the first thing I noticed, because of my copy-editor background, is the misspelling of protesters. Although, I would presume the image was design to ‘irritate a liberal’ — in light of the recent level of resistance to the ACA repeal the joke doesn’t work. Besides, dissension is a foundational requirement of a representative republic (just read some Thomas Jefferson). More importantly, when we, as a nation or community, get to the point that all must act, think and believe the same — we’ve lost what makes us unique and strong — our diversity.

Screenshot from Preble County GOP Facebook page.

But my real complaint with the post is — it’s a really poor attempt at humor. Humor is a skill best left to comedians.

Here’s a much stronger, and better approach.

As anyone who follows politics knows Chris Christie has been dealing with backlash over his decision to shutter the state parks — especially after he was photographed on one of the beaches sans citizens. At a recent MLB game, as he tried to eat his nachos, Christie was harassed. Angered by the jeering, Christie got in the face of a Cubs fan and ‘let him have it.’

After viewing the video clip of the exchange, comedian John Fugelsang Tweeted,

And don’t ever again question Chris Christie’s humanity after seeing him cradle those nachos like a mother primate cradling its young.

Now, I don’t care who you are — or what your political angle is — that’s funny.

Spoiler Alert: Trump Won’t Save Us

Screenshot from Preble County GOP Facebook page.

Despite what my Congressman Warren Davidson Tweeted earlier this year — that all liberals want to do is add another program — as a liberal, I don’t want that. I want an effective, efficient government. I want leaders at the local, state and national level to solve problems, not engage in political warfare. I want a president that leads instead of one who Tweets and campaigns.

I want this because of what I see in Preble County. Here are three recent examples:

  • When I drove to work the other day, as I was stopped at a stop sign, an elderly man stooped over pick up a hypodermic needle, shaking his head in disgust. As a human, politics withstanding, I want the heroin problem here treated as the mental health crisis it is. I want us to mimic Miami County. When a OD victim is rescued there, within 24-48 the responding police officer, paramedic and mental health professional reach out to the addict to help them find treatment. In Eaton, we reserve the right to charge the OD victim with disorderly conduct.
  • A man I recently spoke with who has worked at one of Eaton’s ‘better jobs’ for several decades admitted that they struggle to fill job openings because ‘Johnny can’t pass a drug test.’ As I have posted before, several jobs advertised in the local paper have not been filled for months. This includes farming-centric positions in a farming community. Again, this is a reflection of who we are.  As one recent high school graduate Tweeted, ‘There’s nothing to do in this town but drugs. ‘
  • A local home I lived in 20 years ago, has been available for rent ($550) for four to six weeks. When homes sit empty it can be for a variety of reasons, but one of the most common causes is an inability of residents to pay the rent. We need livable wage jobs and affordable housing.

But one of our biggest problems here is what one local man called our harshness. ‘People just don’t give a shit about each other, anymore, ‘ he said. I agree. Even though some of our harshness may be a result of our mores and values — a lot of it is because we’re reaching a point where we just don’t like each other.

And social media is partially to blame.

Fellow citizens engaging in combativeness is undoubtedly irritating, but when the harshness is championed by a political party via social media it causes societal damage. It hinders progress and perpetuates pettiness.

Preble County’s challenges could be more adequately addressed if the Facebook platform was used for something beyond the national political game of meme ping-pong because, at the end of the day, no one, not even Trump, is going to save us.

That’s on us.

Categories: 8th congressional district, American History, My America, Politics, Preble County, Understanding Trump Counties | Tags: