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