On my political evolution

My early political views were shaped by my father. We were a white middle-class family, though we seemed to have moved up from lower-middle to middle-middle. He was a strong-minded logical person who'd worked his way up to senior management in manufacturing. I identified him as a typical Republican. For example, he was anti-union, because it would cost the company more money in the long run. Watching the fiscal policy arguments of the day, I was enthralled by Ronald Reagan. I believed a strong military was key to national security under the hype of the cold war. I was against gay marriage because I believed straight people could take advantage of it to avoid higher taxes. I believed taxes were too high, and we had too many lazy people on the public dole, based on extrapolating from the history of the Roman Empire. I was against affirmative action because I believed every individual had the means to escape from the caste into which they were born. I identified my mother as a soft-hearted liberal, and used to argue arbitrary positions with her pretty much just for fun. I had mastered the art of cherry-picking pieces of information that fit my world view, and vehemently defend those views, while ignoring any contrary evidence.

I moved out of the house and went to college, then graduate school. Almost all of these views held steadily, although some liberal social views crept in. For example, I was strongly pro-choice, knowing many female peers who opted for abortions and some very young parents whose lives seemed to dead-end with child rearing. I continued to vote Republican as I migrated to a self-description of "fiscally conservative, socially liberal." I figured I would vote with my wallet, and the social side would take care of itself, as they'll never overturn decisions like Roe v. Wade. I think many middle class people today fall into this category, and it seems to align more with a Libertarian view versus traditional Republican vs. Democrat lines.

After graduation, I was employed in a technology-driven job that afforded me the opportunity to travel the country widely from coast to coast, including some international destinations. I was married by then, with a young child, and my view of the world slowly started to change. I watched the debacle of our war-mongering in the Middle East and utter failure of our military-based answers. I noticed great disparities in the workforce, where no matter your personal drive and intelligence, if you were female or not white, upward movement was stifled at every turn. I was a benefactor of the privileged white male viewpoint through my entire life without ever realizing it. I had never spent the time contemplating how my life may not have been so easy if I were born female or of Hispanic or African decent. Each generation of my extended family seemed to be moving steadily up the ladder of success - but we all were given the middle class white opportunities.

My social circles expanded greatly when I was divorced later. At this point in my life, I met many people that fall into the category of "working poor." They had jobs, and worked hard. Some had gone to college to complete degrees they couldn't afford in their 20s. I met under-employed under-educated hard working people struggling to feed their children, embarrassed to admit they required government assistance just to keep their beat-down house and 20 year old rusted car. I watched the Middle East crumble further into decay and war because we dropped a bunch of bombs, killed a bunch of people, but didn't solve anything; we created a power vacuum that invited extremist viewpoints to take over entire countries. I met grown up homosexual people who were hampered in their strive to equal protection. They were happily committed to each other, but the government would not allow legal recognition of their love, making adoption harder, restricting spousal benefits such as health insurance, and so much more. I watched as supposed Christians pushed their views onto the rest of us in very non-Christian ways. And sadly, I've watched the US Republican party move farther and farther right, from fiscally conservative to downright greedy.

Today, I recognize my conservative viewpoint was motivated entirely by self-interest. Everything in the world was black and white. If a policy didn't afford me a better chance for future success, it was to be argued against. Keep my taxes low, screw the poor. Keep unions out, screw the laborers who didn't go to college. Keep hiring policies the same, screw equal opportunity for all. Keep the military funded to protect me and mine, screw the rest of the world.

More recently I have discovered Buddhism and the path of Dharma that teaches compassion for all living beings. Compassion for others is truly a key to ones own happiness and a peaceful mind. Conservative political policies are almost entirely diametrically opposed to treating others with compassion. They are driven by Ego, structured to ensure the rich get richer and the poor stay poor. Listen to any Republican politician speak today, and beneath the rhetoric all you hear is anger and unhappiness. They profess that they stand for individual rights, but in reality they stand only for personal gain. Every policy direction is governed by personal gain, from hiring practices and equal protection to environmental views and education. There's a mantra in high-end B2B sales that "greed is good." I disagree entirely. The result of these policies has lead to staggering income inequality, a pathetic educational system, buckling infrastructure, and anti-American views around the world.

I apologize unreservedly for every argument I've every had where I took a stand from my Ego and my personal gain. I was wrong. However, I have learned from those mistakes.

I am still privileged. I am a white male in a professional job that pays well. My kids will be able to attend any college they want. I have my own late model car and my own home in a safe neighborhood. But while my income is higher than its ever been, I give more of it away now than I ever have. I still encounter problems in my life, but I recognize they aren't really problems - they're events that may require unplanned tasks to navigate. Compared to the rest of the world, I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I look forward to the day when my kids are out of school and no longer dependent on me. That will hopefully allow me the opportunity to shed further my worldly possessions, minimize my footprint to having "just enough," and focus more strongly on humbly treating every living being with compassion in the hopes that they will find happiness and a peaceful mind.

I encounter suffering in my life. Many others are experiencing much greater suffering. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we were all free from suffering?

"The greatest wealth is to live content with little." -- Plato

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion." -- Dalai Lama

On American Patriotism

Today is July 4, 2015 - the day we celebrate this country's declaring independence from Great Britain. The actual date that occurred in 1776 is actually quite blurry. July 2 was a key date, as was July 4, but the UK didn't really know about any of this until late August. Regardless, for hundreds of years, we've used July 4 to mark the anniversary of this event that lead to a war and changed the world in a significant way.

Americans typically celebrate the day off work (for many of us, except the working poor who still have to serve us this day) with BBQs, beer, and other outdoor activities. The day is capped off with fireworks displays across the country at dusk. It's generally a pretty happy day, and I regularly partake in some form of the festivities. However, it's not a really big holiday for me.

This dawned on me this morning as I was dressing. The typical dress code for the day is an ensemble of red, white, and blue. Many take it further than just the colors and wear US flag apparel or other symbols of their patriotism. As I looked through my closet, I own no flag-based clothing at all. I don't even own anything that is red, white, and blue. In years past, I'd just make do the best I can. Maybe a red and white shirt with a blue sweatshirt. But today I was reflecting on why I own nothing flag-related, and looking at my closet you'd see zero signs of patriotism (although I own many other symbolic T-shirts).

First of all, I'm not a huge fan of our Flag. Compared to the many simpler designs found across the world, or among the 50 state flags, this one, I believe, is below average. While it's full of symbolism of the 13 original colonies and the 50 states, it doesn't really work as a partial design. You kind of need the whole thing, or else it's just blue with white stars or overly-wide red and white strips. I just don't see it as attractive apparel. If it were a simpler design, maybe my opinion would be different.

Second, I really have to admit I'm not a huge Patriot. This word has been hijacked in recent years by right-wing ultraconservatives as a pro-violence rallying cry. It's also a well known fallback for the Tea Party group. I do not identify with either of these groups, but there are countless patriotic liberals as well, and they often wear flag-based clothing, or at least the color palette. 

Don't get me wrong - I am very fortunate to have been born in this country, and I recognize well the opportunities it affords me. I also understand the sacrifices of countless men and women in getting us where we are today so that we can enjoy the freedoms we have. However, my being born in this country really just comes down to a bit of luck. Experiencing rebirth in the precious human form is incredibly more rare than achieving a human birth to happen to land in the USA.

Why should I feel any pride in the accidental place of my birth? I had nothing to do with that, and I kind of view it as a false pride. I think it's generally OK for one to take pride in their work (just don't get too attached to that feeling!), but to take pride in your birthplace? I don't see a logical basis for this at all. I am grateful that I was born in a free society and to have been given an opportunity to touch Dharma and follow a path of my choosing that is not dictated by a totalitarian government. But I didn't do any work towards that goal of my birth (building merit in previous lives aside).

I would much rather everyone across the world set aside a day to celebrate and express thankfulness for being Human. National pride often leads to reinforcing delusions and takes the focus off the real challenges of this short human existence. The greatest joy one can feel is treating other beings with compassion; setting yourself apart from 96% of the world by getting drunk, torching the sky and eating hotdogs is not an act of compassion.

So as I head out this afternoon for activities on this July 4, I will be mindful of my eternal gratefulness that being born in this country affords me. I may even don some red, white and blue if I can find anything in the closet. But deep down, I will be celebrating achieving a human rebirth on this pass through Samsara rather than filling myself with a delusion that I had something to do with our independence from Great Britain in a bloody war over 200 years ago.


"Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism - how passionately I hate them!" -- Albert Einstein

"Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about." -- Mark Twain