A Tale of Two Nations: Part II
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A Tale of Two Nations: Part II
The Right
For those who read about my experience at an Obama tarmac stop in Cleveland, the Romney/Ryan rally the next day was remarkably similar. There was the chaotic traffic, the large American flag, the massive lines, the same security process, the same air of collectivity in the crowd, and the same types of vendors peddling their wares, even the same red, white, and blue boas I had seen the night before. People were friendly.
Speaking of boas, my liberal feathers were only seriously ruffled once, shortly after I parked. Observing the line of cars searching for parking, a woman commented to me, “I just don’t understand why anyone would come this late.” It being shortly after 5pm on a weekday (for an event that wasn’t scheduled to begin until 6:30pm), I expressed my good fortune at being able to arrive so early, while stifling the more knee-jerk response of “Hey b*tch, did it occur to you that some people have to work?”
My thoughts about conservatives softened soon after I slipped into line, as the group behind me passed up a pair of gloves that someone had dropped. “Did you drop these gloves? If not, can you pass them up the line? We’re trying to get them to their owner.” It was a collective effort of kindness, and the owner was located.
As the vendors passed by, I saw much of the standard political fare—t-shirts, pins, and an adorable stuffed elephant wearing a tiny Romney tee. Of all the products, only a couple stood out as a bit provocative—pins that read:
– Forget Dogs and Cats, Spay and Neuter Your Liberal
– Annoy a Liberal: Work Hard, Be Happy
Aside from being a bit disturbed at the minimization of the importance of spaying and neutering animals, it was hard to get too upset; the people around me were far more preoccupied with the vendor selling oven mitts with Romney’s face printed on them. The group behind me couldn’t seem to get over the humor of the vendor’s bellow of “Get your oven Mitt here! Don’t get burned again!”
There was one anti-Romney protestor, a college-aged girl wearing an awkward, self-conscious smile as she walked past the line with a piece of poster board bearing the hand-written message that “Romney = No Choice, No Birth Control.” I overheard the group behind me commenting on her bravery for protesting alone, but there were no insults sent her way.
Once I was past security, the event took on many of the same characteristics as the Obama event the night before. There was the prayer (this time giving particular blessings to Romney, of course), the Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem, to the stream of politicians’ speeches leading up to the “guest of honor.” Aside from the party line being recited on stage, there were only three real distinctions between the Obama and Romney events:
The Oak Ridge Boys. When the band was first introduced, I was sure I had misheard. Maybe I had died, and gone to a purgatory where I was surrounded by conservatives, but allowed the comfort of the sounds of “Elvira.” It turns out that the Oak Ridge Boys were at the Romney rally to endorse him for president. I may not agree with their politics, but it sure made for a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem.
The Whiteness. I know everyone was waiting for this. On one hand, I was pleased not to overhear any racist vitriol during the event. I did hear one call for “death to Obama,” but in all fairness was uttered by a teenage boy who stated it with a chuckle in his voice after the crowd had booed a mention of the President. Sure, it wasn’t funny in the least, but quite frankly, I don’t think anyone (left or right) would want the utterances of a pubescent teen to be mistaken for a party platform.
On the other hand, nor was this your standard meeting of the Rainbow Coalition. I was clearly expecting a less diverse crowd than the Obama event, but given the location of this rally between two large cities with significant black populations, I figured that somewhere within the crowd of 10,000 I might spot a black conservative. I did, in fact, see six blacks that night. Every single one of them was there as a vendor. And trust me, I was looking. Once I was past security, no matter how much I walked past the bleachers, nor scanned the standing crowd, I was unable to locate anything other than white faces.
The Patriotism. There was an intangible difference between the Romney and Obama events, but it was not in the form of anti-Americanism at the Obama event, as conservatives might expect, nor in the form of hatred, bigotry, or religiosity at the Romney event, as liberals might expect. There was patriotism at both events, but it was a different kind of patriotism.
At the Obama event, the sense was that this was a patriotism woven from a fabric of struggle. It was in the loyalty of these people to their President. It was in cheers for Obamacare, a boisterous recognition of the distance that remains between American ideals and the reality of an America that would allow its working poor go bankrupt from one trip to the emergency room. It was in the cheers for a recovering economy, a cry of support for opportunities to achieve the American dream that for many has remained out of grasp. These people believed in American ideals, but as a vision that our nation must continually fight for despite our grim and troubled past.
At the Romney event, the sense was of a patriotism rooted in the belief that America is its ideals. Even though many in the crowd had surely known struggle, I had the impression that this was a group surrounded by the American dream every day, in the form of home ownership, investments, decent schools, and well-manicured lawns. For those surrounded by the apparent American dream within their neighborhoods and communities, it can be easy to fall to the illusion that it’s always within grasp for those willing to work hard enough, even in the midst of setbacks like layoffs and foreclosures. It was in the cheers for free enterprise, for small businesses, and for the abolition of Obamacare. This was patriotism baked of apple pie and adorned with American flags, complete with its setting on a high school baseball field. If only the government would let people do their thing, and people would just work hard enough, we could all be happily middle class.
The fact of these two worldviews regarding what America is and what American needs, speaks to the most fundamental tear in the fabric of our nation. Race was only the most visible representation of a country that remains divided by politics, religion, and status, but I think at the core of this polarization is the juncture of worldviews regarding the relationship of America to its founding principles. If one sees us as being a land of freedom and opportunity, those fighting for government programs will appear lazy and un-American. If one sees the inequality that continues to pervade our society, it’s easy to see those fighting on the right as racist and self-interested. (This isn’t to say that there aren’t plenty of racists on the right, and perhaps plenty of lazy folk on the left, but I don’t think that either extreme speaks to the core of these parties.)
I would argue that the responsibility for the growing division between these camps rests not with any political party, but on us as a people, who seem increasingly content to remain in our respective political camps for fear of the other side, never stopping to consider that our opponents may be just as well-intended and just as invested in the future of the U.S.A.
Perhaps the most troubling aspect of attending both the Romney and Obama rallies was having pledged allegiance to “one nation, under God, indivisible” within crowds that so starkly highlighted how divided we currently are. No stump speech or party platform should distract us from the knowledge that we are tied in our fate nor from the desire to find common ground in our fight for the good of the nation. United we stand.
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I agree with Bill. This is one of the most insightful posts I’ve read in a long time, and coupled with the original post, makes for some serious political observation without actually declaring allegiance.
Sincerely appreciated, Dale!
G.L., once again, you hit it out of the park with a couple of really good posts. Thanks for the insight.
Thanks for the kind words, Bill!
One of the quotations that I have always like very well is also one of the oldest. Marcus Aurelius, “You must forgive him, he is from the country and believes his local customs are laws of nature.”
That seems to describe so much of what we see and hear today. “If I believe it, it’s right for everyone, like it or not.”
“No stump speech or party platform should distract us from the knowledge that we are tied in our fate nor from the desire to find common ground in our fight for the good of the nation. United we stand.”
Wish I could second this Julie but sadly I cannot. When you have almost half of the population willfully ignorant of facts, it is impossible to come to the knowledge we are tied in our fate. Just today there are idiots on Freeperblogs talking about, Sandy it’s just a windstorm, I dunno why people are saying this is a bad storm. this is with pics of the destruction surrounding them, they are staying ignorant of facts. Can’t deal with people that live in another reality. I voted already, so I can help drive people to the polls on election day.
Thanks for the comment, Jess! I just don’t know that we can conclude that half of the population is “willfully ignorant.” The greatest extremists (*ahem, tea party, cough,cough*) are those we hear the most from, but I don’t think they represent the bulk of the republican party. The same goes for those questioning the severity of Sandy, or those who would deny the Holocaust.
What I recognized at the Romney event was the type of ignorance that surrounded me as a child. Some of those people were surely racists, but, if my community growing up was any indication, they likely got to that point because 1) they were taught that racial issues ended in the 1960s; 2) they believe that the “American dream” is attainable to everyone: 3) they witness racial divides in crime, poverty, education, and employment; and 4) they conclude that racial minorities must therefore be (lazy, uneducated, criminal, etc.) because they are genuinely blind to the underlying structural issues. This is ignorance, but I don’t think it’s willful. (It makes the right more compatible with vicious racists, but the two aren’t one and the same.) We can only know what we know. I think this holds true for some of those who deny global warming or evolution as well–they mistake scientific facts for moral or political arguments, and so they cling tightly to their religious teachings on principle. While it makes them look ignorant to be sure, I’m not sure that it’s a willful ignorance. I think that for the masses, at least, they simply don’t “get it.”
Now, as far as the handful of people who genuinely do know better, but who choose to make a living hosting conferences that deny global warming and spend their time fighting environmental regulations on in the name of profit…well, those are the few genuine sleezes I don’t think we should mistake as representing the core of the party.
Just my two cents…
I don’t see where Romney had much choice, given his fundraising effortrs. Did he have fireworks? Who does that? Maybe that level of excitement is usually reserved for baseball games. Romeny has hardly hit the homer on this campaign.
Absolutely, I didn’t mention the fireworks. 🙂 The whole event had a very all-American, 4th of July feel (give or take the cold and biting wind). I can’t blame the campaign for wanting to energize the base. That said, I’m not sure that either party in an election should be able to stake claim to being the “patriotic” party. Democracy is patriotic. Now everyone, go vote. 🙂
My friend Lee sent me both of your stories. First time I’ve been to this website, and am impressed, but concerned as to whether there was complete transparency in both of your stories. I notice you mention the “merchants” at the Romney affair, which, IMHO, demeans the man and the campaign. As one of the few undecided I’m curious as to whether or not you noticed anyone selling political knick-knacks, T’s and etc. at the Obama affair?
I’m glad for the question. Absolutely, if you follow the link to the Obama article, I do mention vendors there as well. I’m not sure of the process of licensing, etc., but I got the impression that the vendors at both events were there as private merchants, not directly affiliated with the campaigns. There were plenty of vendors at both events. There was a slight difference in that I didn’t notice any anti-Republican or anti-Romney goods for sale at the Obama event, whereas at the Romney event, there were those couple of provocative pins, along with people selling shirts like “No Jobs, No Money, NObama”–but this may be the nature of marketing wares for the candidate running against the incumbent. Since MMA is a liberal-leaning site, I wanted to disclose what I saw, but also hope that any liberals readers took note of the fact that that there were no hateful nor racist items present. I think the left has started to let the fringes of the republican party shade their impression of the party as a whole. The Romney event was clearly a “white” event, but it was not by any stretch of the imagination a “white power” event.
As far as transparency, I’m a social lib, fiscal conservative, so I thought it would be interesting to contrast the two events. I focused more on the crowds than on the candidates, as the candidates’ speeches were largely reflective of the platforms already widely shared in debates, on television, etc.
I know which way I’ll be voting, but it’s for the candidate that I “fear the least,” and I suspect plenty on both sides of the aisle have the same sense in this election. That’s unfortunate. I believe in the U.S. and consider myself deeply patriotic, and it was sad to see so many things that I love about the U.S. at both events, but in crowds so starkly divided.
While there are extremists on both sides, I think most republicans are good people with good hearts, who simply don’t “see” the nature of struggles they haven’t experienced. Those who are laid off or foreclosed upon know struggle and hardship, but I’m not convinced that it compares to those who are enmeshed in poverty. Whether it’s a matter of schools, healthcare, or living conditions, we shouldn’t be satisfied with fellow Americans being left with resources that we wouldn’t want for our own children. Among the middle- and upper-classes, there are often overt discussions about wanting to get into the best schools, or avoid urban school districts, or a distaste for medical facilities that feel like “welfare clinics.” We shouldn’t be satisfied with avoiding certain neighborhoods due to fear of violence, while allowing fellow Americans to live amidst that violence. At the same time, I think the left feels strongly enough about these issues that they may fail to consider the practical, fiscal implications of the policies they want in place to address them. By having more cross-aisle discussions, I think far more people would move to center from both sides of these issues, and that’s what I think would be best for the future of the nation.
What’s been interesting in this election is that it now seems off-limits to talk about the poor, unless the candidates are citing fluctuations in poverty statistics. The “struggling middle-class” has become the safe way to talk about social programs, but it reinforces the blindness of issues of poverty for those who are comfortably enmeshed in the middle class. I wish the parties could come closer to the middle, with a dedication to taking on the very real issues that exist in our society, but to doing it in a fiscally responsible, efficient way. For example, if the Republican Party thinks that Obamacare is a violation of the free market, I can support that…but what will that party do to improve access to health care, particularly among those with preexisting conditions? What can we do to pull up the quality of health care in lower-income communities? To me this is a human rights issue, not a political one.
I’ll get off my soapbox now. 🙂
I read both of these installments and am impressed by this level of writing. I can easily see two nations coming, and coming soon. Sad. You Americans once had it all, and you squandered it in the name of corporatocracy and jesus.
“Corporatocracy” I like that term. It describes the situation in the USA very well and explains why there has been very little difference between Bush and Obama. They are both being run by the big money interests.
I appreciate the comment, Baker! The event I attended was in the region of Ohio most influenced by the Northeast (the state is at the juncture of the South, Northeast, and Midwest, which is why I think it tends to “swing”), so religion wasn’t as much a part of the “vibe” as I suspect it would have been in the south. Unfortunately, I think there’s a perception on the left that all republicans are raging racist, religious lunatics, which will keep them away from party events. This just drives the divide. The other party isn’t a group to be feared; for better or worse, they’re our fellow Americans, and we should be working together accordingly. At least in my humble opinion. 🙂
“Two nations” could be prophetic. I believe there is a very real chance that the USA will split into two or more countries within the next 50 years. At least one will be a totalitarian theocracy and one will be a liberal semi-socialist country, somewhat as we see in most Scandinavian countries today.
The scary part is they may all possess nuclear weapons. I fear the theocracy will not hesitate to use “God’s holy fire” to impose its will upon the rest.
Thanks for the response. I believe in the good ole’ “US of A,” and I’m concerned by the polarization that’s taking place. Right now it’s in the form of rhetoric, but the more it stifles cross-the-aisle discussions, the more I fear it will escalate. Nations can and do fall apart, and I really don’t want to see us become one of them.