Ignorance is Bliss

How the U.S. sees the world,
according to domestic news coverage,
Alisa Miller, CEO of Public Radio International,
"Why We Know Less than Ever about the World"

What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans,
and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought
under the name of totalitarianism
or the holy name of liberty or democracy?
--Mohandas Gandhi

You know, if I listened to him long enough,
I would be convinced we're in an economic downturn
and people are homeless and going without food
and medical attention and that we've got to do
something about the unemployed
--Ronald Reagan on Michael Dukakis

Happy days are here again
The skies above are clear again
So lets sing a song of cheer again
Happy days are here again
--Happy Days Are Here Again,
Yellen and Ager (1929)
_____________

If Mr. Reagan learned one thing in Hollywood, it was to leave them smiling. And smile they still do. Even candidate Obama doesn't mind a comparison to the Gipper.

But there are two Americas, and one gives little reason to smile. As defined by the Republicans and Democrats, the nation is divided politically -- "Them" and "Us". But this rhetorical divide ignores the real America inhabited by the vast majority of us who are the suckers that pay the taxes that allow Them to rule our sorry little asses.

To many of Us, the choice of Democrat or Republican is immaterial, for our lives do not operate in the ideological spheres of political dialog. As well, there seems little difference in the initiatives for those who demographically don't count for much, those who are all but disenfranchised due to illness, or ignorance or work.

For a look at one slice of the great middle: Ranger uses the public library to do his computer work. Upon arrival at 9:55 a.m. for the 10:00 a.m. library opening, the entire outer lobby is filled with homeless people waiting for the doors to open, too. Why? Because this is their home from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. everyday except Sunday, at which time their library home hours are truncated from 1-5.

Keep this in mind when evaluating Candidate McCain's outline which envisions an Iraq victory by 2013. The great divinator said, "It's not a timetable; it's victory. It's victory. . . " Well that's just fantastic -- oh, happy day.

Of course, this does nothing for the homeless at the library, who would define victory as being allowed to sleep on the library floor in the comfort of a climate-controlled environment.

To the extent politicians are concerned about the sub-prime mortgage fiasco, it is to aid and abet wayward borrowers, or to help bailout greedy investors. But nary a word about people for whom owning a home shall never be a reality.

It is acceptable to throw $6 billion down the drain in Pakistan, but the local homeless shelter in Tallahassee turns people away each night due to lack of funds and lack of beds.

Where does democracy start, and where does it end? How has our leadership become so remote from the reality of everyday America?