Welcome to the Revolution

Ok-
First of all- thanks for checking this out. I haven't had a blog before, mostly because I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in reading it. But man- I'm concerned about America- and not because I think people should go back to the fifties. It's because we have become addicted to rage in the political sphere, and there are some very troubling implications for the way this influences voter behavior. While I don't have all the answers, I am dedicated to locating the questions we need to be asking ourselves as our national character slowly shifts to a place of entitled nationalism. I hope you find this to be thought-provoking, or at the very least, amusing, because really- if you can't laugh at life's absurdities you might as well stick your head in an oven... or, failing that, watch Fox News for an entire day.

I will deal several broad themes:

1) politics (I am a libertarian) and how my perspective informs my reaction to history as it is happening.
2) being a single mother of 4 and how that impacts my world view- I am looking 20-50 years down the road.
3) current political thought- both academic and pop culture- books and other forms of media that are making me think
4) and the personal faith that pulls me through when I'd just as soon barricade myself in a deserted cabin and obsessively mutter my second amendment rights. I consider myself a Christian but I think I have been voted off the Island by many Christians for my pesky habit of questioning things like the conservative need to persecute homosexuals- so to avoid doctrinal hairsplitting I am defining FAITH as my conviction that I need to love God with all my heart soul, mind, and strength, and that I am called to love my neighbor as myself. Applying these principles to the messiness of 21st century is why I am continually "working out my faith with fear and trembling..."

These themes intersect when I think about the world my kids will inherit. While I've been to Tea Party rallies (and have even let all four children skip school for one) and identify with voter disenchantment, I really don't like the angry tone of the talking heads who seem to get the most coverage. The principle of fiscal responsibility that this movement was founded upon seems to have been hijacked by a diffuse sense of "things are wrong in America and let's whoop someone's ass to feel better". Glenn Beck's attitude of self righteous, simplistic, sarcastic disdain for others who don't think like he does all wrapped up in a message of God and country terrifies me with its growing popularity. Rage seems to be the flavor of choice... yet undisciplined rage is incredibly dangerous on a national scale because it is so easily manipulated.

Celebrity culture, economic instability, and an uninformed public could easily coalesce into a situation where impulsive and emotion driven voters are manipulated into voting a fascist into office- a fascist who talks about freedom (meaning of course- you are free to hate anyone who is different than you) and satisfies national insecurity by scapegoating marginalized groups. Immigrants (in the process of becoming legal who are looking for their piece of the American dream) strike me as an obvious target. Why is this so troubling? If the quote "Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it" resonates with you, I ask you to consider Germany in the early 1930's. It was a humiliated nation that had suffered a loss in global power, was financially overextended, and had a population full of angry, God fearing people looking for a savior to make Germany great again. The German population wanted to feel great, and in their rage filled desire to be the greatest nation they chose a charismatic leader to lead them there...

As we are tempted as a nation to parrot the words of our favorite political talking heads, our national character is in a similar place. Rage, not careful deconstruction of what went wrong seems to be the answer the public is looking for as we confront our declining superpower status. So- my title "The Cheerful Revolutionary" is chosen because I don't think America will stay great unless its passion is redirected from destructive anger towards hope that fuels well thought out solutions for the political landscape our leaders now face, both at home and abroad. For those of you who are rolling your eyes thinking that I am Obama 2.0 and this is just more "hope and change" kaka, I can assure you it is not. I have serious issues with his alliance with corporate interests over those of a struggling middle class. The solutions I will focus on are ideas that can be implemented on a community or state level and deal less with rhetoric than connecting individuals who can barter services as way of bypassing red tape, questionable currency, and political rhetoric. For example: putting our seniors to work in schools to accumulate credits that will give them tax abatements and medical care... and teaching high schoolers the value of their high school education by making them earn it through community service...

I am a mother who knows that tantrums don't work- they just waste time and allowing them creates spoiled brats. America has been having a temper tantrum because the prosperity we considered our birthright is on life support. We can stomp our feet about it, or we can start thinking up ways to reallocate resources we still possess in a way that will conserve resources so that we have more energy to make the world a better place. A period of national humility is crucial as we reexamine what makes a nation "great" in the 21st century. So let's shut our pieholes about people taking away our freedom as we accumulate more and more debt because "We're worth it". And then let's get to work so our kids have good reason to be "proud to be an American".