Who I Am

The ol’ Hillbilly has seen sixteen of these presidential elections an’ the Good Lord bein’ willin’ he’s ‘bout t’ see number seventeen.
Obviously I’m not as old as Joe Biden, he remembers all the way back to 1929. Those memories allow him to correct all the revisionist history books that have been telling us that Herbert Hoover was president and television wasn’t yet invented.
However, I do remember Roosevelt. I don’t remember his re-election in 1944 although I was alive when it happened, what I do remember is what happened in 1945 – I remember it well and vividly.
My good old Hillbilly Daddy had set in to teach me to read in preparation for kindergarten. He wasn’t just teaching me ABCs, but to actually read words and simple sentences. My primer was the daily newspaper which he read avidly. I would stand close to him as he sat and read the evening paper. He would have me read as many of the words as possible, always teaching me new words and explaining their meanings (It wasn’t that hard – it was a liberal paper). But on the day I remember so clearly, he was teaching me politics, not reading.
Two parts of that event stand out in my memory, the picture on the front page and my father weeping. The picture was of the hearse that bore the body of Franklin Roosevelt, my father wept as he told me America had lost her greatest living person. We were dedicated Democrats in those days.
I well remember the election of 1948, after which the newspaper was greeted with glee rather than tears. Harry Truman had, against all pundital predictions, beaten Republican Thomas Dewey.
By the next election my parents had separated politically. Dad voted Stevenson, Mom voted for her cousin Dwight (she didn’t know she was distantly related to him). You can believe I remember the political discussions that year! Four years later it was the same story. By that time I was very interested in politics and I sided strongly with Dad.
But then came Kennedy. Mom voted Nixon, Dad stayed home, and I campaigned for Nixon.
In 1964 I was an ardent worker for Barry Goldwater. I even had an AuH2O64 sign over my desk at work. I remember a customer from Spain telling me Barry was “muy peligroso” – Europe never has liked Republicans.
In ’68 I voted without enthusiasm for Nixon – Dad said he was a crook and I half believed him, but after the debacles of Kennedy and Johnson, and the obvious radical tilt of the country, I chose Tricky Dick – it may be the only vote I regret. In ’72 there was no real choice – only the lunatic left voted for Mc Govern, but I almost went third party that time.
In ’76 I voted for Ford with confidence in his good judgment. We sure learned that the Georgia Peanut had none of that.
Finally, in ’80 the Republicans gave us a candidate we could be excited about. I voted Reagan twice (not in the same election of course – I’m not a Democrat).
In ’88, with misgivings I voted Bush. In ’92 I voted for him again but with enthusiasm. After all, I had lived in Arkansas knew about Clinton – almost moved to Hope myself, a nice little town where the folks raise good watermelons. But I didn’t get the job in Hope and thus my exile began as I moved to the frigid northland.
When Bill Clinton won the election I predicted to friends of mine that he would either be impeached or be run out of office before the end of his first term. Sorry, my timing was off and his skill at political survival was greater than I expected.
I was disappointed in 2000 when G.W. Bush was nominated. Yes, I voted for him, but what choice did I have? Gore lives in a science fiction world. Nevertheless, I wrote an article extremely critical of the intervention of the Supreme Court – I would have rather seen the constitutional process go forward, in spite of the confusion and uncertainty. I am not a Republican, I am a conservative.
I supported Bush’s attack on Afghanistan and strongly opposed the invasion of Iraq. In ’04 I informed all who would listen that I was voting third party. My Republican and conservative friends begged, pleaded, and even accused me of wasting my vote. I had to agree that Kerry was not to be trusted. Finally I yielded, held tightly to my nose and voted for Bush – huge mistake. I now have two votes I regret.
This year I refused to support either the Dem or the Republican. I am disgusted with what has been passed off as governance over the past four years. The executive branch has been so fixed on justifying and winning the Iraq war that they have let everything else go to ruin. The Democrats gloated their way back into control of the legislature and then took a two year rest from doing anything at all. Not that the Republicans showed any appreciable energy. So we have the present mess.
An aside – four years ago I predicted that this election would see the splintering of the two parties. I predicted that the parties would nominate the usual pair of inepts and that John Mc Cain and Joe Lieberman would run on an independent centrist ticket. I’d be real interested to know whether those gentlemen ever gave such a possibility any thought.
This year I have actively supported a third party candidate who I am still convinced is the best candidate – Alan Keyes. I voted for him in primaries years ago and would be totally delighted if he were elected. But I’m having déjà vu. It’s 1972 all over again. A radical very far out in left field Democrat wants us to entrust the future of our country and our grandkids to him and his terrorist friends. No way! No way, never! Alan forgive me. I can’t take the chance. I’ll vote, without enthusiasm, for John Mc Cain – a good and capable man, just a little too centrist for this conservative. I will vote with enthusiasm for the most real American person I have ever seen on a presidential ticket, Sarah Palin.
And I promise – here and now – I will not vote to send any incumbent, Republican or Democrat, back to congress. We do need change and we will get change, no matter who is elected we will get change. It may be good and it may be terrible, but we will get change. We need change in the legislature more than anyplace else in our government. Most Americans agree – just look at the approval ratings.