You godda admit, it takes a lot these days to shock or disappoint The Angry White Mom, but i have had an epiphany that may save me hundreds of dollars in therapy co-pays, and i feel a strong obligation to pass it on in case others are feeling the same feelings I am but somehow cannot express them. I mean, I have let go some pretty irritating stuff -- the War on Women and Children, the Welfare to Work bull shit,
the entire RNC convention, the high-pitched whine, like that of an obnoxious male mosquito, that is Reince Preibus.
If some of you have noticed my absence from these pages, well bless you for noticing, and let me first say that part of my absence has been due to an obnoxious back injury that has been a nagging deterrent to sitting anywhere, anytime, for very long. Sorry, But a few needles in the spine and some massive pain medications have got me upright and although my vertebrae remain painfully fragile, and my nerves are
rubbed raw, believe me, my spine (although injured in a different way) lately also has seen a comeback and appears to be growing strong again.
My back I hurt by falling. My "spine", however, that indefinable core of convictions that centers you and binds you to reality, was almost irretrievably injured last summer by a once-respected relative, who, like
presidential candidate Mitt Romney recently, characterized me as one of "those people". It shocked me. I mean, I knew his political views were to the right of mine, but you know, he's still related... But it rocked me to the core, because I know of absolutely nothing in my history or my life that would seem to justify his perception of me. And that perception itself was so shocking, it nearly paralyzed me psychologically for quite some time, demanding a deeper look perhaps into my own place in this America.
But wait, I wanted to tell him. Wait a sec -- what "those people?" I have never been on welfare. Never applied for food stamps, or even a SBA loan. No grants or loans for college --\mom and i footed the whole bill. Never applied for school lunches for the boys. Never cheated on a tax return. My husband and I pay our property taxes on time every year. I make sure our medical bills are paid. I have never overcharged a client. I haven't worked full time since 2008, and did not qualify for unemployment. And so. Looking it all over, I find our family situation, and our attitudes, our values, to be failrly typical as opposed to special. Most folks I know are just like us. Us people.
But the term "those people" -- as sneered at us by Romney as well as my relative (and others who have been more fortunate or smarter or better connected and ultimately better off financially) it carries with it an almost sinister connotation. You know exactly what they mean, but its not really said out loud but instead with winks and nose-led nods of agreement, like the not-so-subtle hand gestures law enforcement uses even today to indicate a black person. But ever ready to help out, Romney has even listed the attributes of us "those people" for us --- in short, we "those people" are dependent, lazy, entitled.
These days, though, "those people" who depend on the government and its entitlements, include a couple I know who have an autistic teenage son. They are not an anecdote, or a public relations -enhanced story but are real, hardworking Americans who pay taxes and are imminently deserving of the paltry amount of assistance the Federal Government gives the public school that their son attends to help with the cost of providing him with the best possible education despite his disability. This, folks, is an example of one of the "Entitlements" that enrage the right. Yes. One of those freedom-gutting entitlements that "those people" get. Really? I seriously suggest that anyone unhappy with "entitlements" should take a look at what they are and what they are designed to accomplish before brainlessly bashing them.
I suspect Mr. Romney is disappointed because "those people" are not as accepting of his policies as he would prefer. Do I object when someone wants to devalue my Social Security and my Medicare investments (oh God, did she really just say "Investments?") --- Why I most certainly do. Because what they want to do is not what I signed up for. I object to their wanting to break the contract with the American people, and I find myself wondering, when they scream to "take back our country" whether they mean taking it back to the 1950s as I first suspected, or taking it back to the 1870s when successive Congresses made it a common practice to break anyand all contracts previously made by the government with Native tribes that would give them any sort of ability to sustain themselves. I guess the Indians were the "those people" of the day.
I guess I should not complain. After all, as one of "those people" I find that I prefer the company.
Whether coming from the guy who claims to want my vote, or from a relative, the words themselves are not Truth, but only symbols of the deeply contemptuous opinion revealed in their uttering. Yes, the words really do sting, leave ugly bruises and a deep ache in the gut. Not really the kind of injuries that can easily be fixed by neurological procedures or even a bandage. Go figure.
the entire RNC convention, the high-pitched whine, like that of an obnoxious male mosquito, that is Reince Preibus.
If some of you have noticed my absence from these pages, well bless you for noticing, and let me first say that part of my absence has been due to an obnoxious back injury that has been a nagging deterrent to sitting anywhere, anytime, for very long. Sorry, But a few needles in the spine and some massive pain medications have got me upright and although my vertebrae remain painfully fragile, and my nerves are
rubbed raw, believe me, my spine (although injured in a different way) lately also has seen a comeback and appears to be growing strong again.
My back I hurt by falling. My "spine", however, that indefinable core of convictions that centers you and binds you to reality, was almost irretrievably injured last summer by a once-respected relative, who, like
presidential candidate Mitt Romney recently, characterized me as one of "those people". It shocked me. I mean, I knew his political views were to the right of mine, but you know, he's still related... But it rocked me to the core, because I know of absolutely nothing in my history or my life that would seem to justify his perception of me. And that perception itself was so shocking, it nearly paralyzed me psychologically for quite some time, demanding a deeper look perhaps into my own place in this America.
But wait, I wanted to tell him. Wait a sec -- what "those people?" I have never been on welfare. Never applied for food stamps, or even a SBA loan. No grants or loans for college --\mom and i footed the whole bill. Never applied for school lunches for the boys. Never cheated on a tax return. My husband and I pay our property taxes on time every year. I make sure our medical bills are paid. I have never overcharged a client. I haven't worked full time since 2008, and did not qualify for unemployment. And so. Looking it all over, I find our family situation, and our attitudes, our values, to be failrly typical as opposed to special. Most folks I know are just like us. Us people.
But the term "those people" -- as sneered at us by Romney as well as my relative (and others who have been more fortunate or smarter or better connected and ultimately better off financially) it carries with it an almost sinister connotation. You know exactly what they mean, but its not really said out loud but instead with winks and nose-led nods of agreement, like the not-so-subtle hand gestures law enforcement uses even today to indicate a black person. But ever ready to help out, Romney has even listed the attributes of us "those people" for us --- in short, we "those people" are dependent, lazy, entitled.
These days, though, "those people" who depend on the government and its entitlements, include a couple I know who have an autistic teenage son. They are not an anecdote, or a public relations -enhanced story but are real, hardworking Americans who pay taxes and are imminently deserving of the paltry amount of assistance the Federal Government gives the public school that their son attends to help with the cost of providing him with the best possible education despite his disability. This, folks, is an example of one of the "Entitlements" that enrage the right. Yes. One of those freedom-gutting entitlements that "those people" get. Really? I seriously suggest that anyone unhappy with "entitlements" should take a look at what they are and what they are designed to accomplish before brainlessly bashing them.
I suspect Mr. Romney is disappointed because "those people" are not as accepting of his policies as he would prefer. Do I object when someone wants to devalue my Social Security and my Medicare investments (oh God, did she really just say "Investments?") --- Why I most certainly do. Because what they want to do is not what I signed up for. I object to their wanting to break the contract with the American people, and I find myself wondering, when they scream to "take back our country" whether they mean taking it back to the 1950s as I first suspected, or taking it back to the 1870s when successive Congresses made it a common practice to break anyand all contracts previously made by the government with Native tribes that would give them any sort of ability to sustain themselves. I guess the Indians were the "those people" of the day.
I guess I should not complain. After all, as one of "those people" I find that I prefer the company.
Whether coming from the guy who claims to want my vote, or from a relative, the words themselves are not Truth, but only symbols of the deeply contemptuous opinion revealed in their uttering. Yes, the words really do sting, leave ugly bruises and a deep ache in the gut. Not really the kind of injuries that can easily be fixed by neurological procedures or even a bandage. Go figure.
