The Furious Spinner

Fascinating piece: “Poor, White, and Pissed” by Joe Bageant. I never understood how someone could consider me an "elite liberal" since I have very little money, crappy health, and not the greatest prospects. I thought I had something in common with the working poor—I assumed we wanted the same things: good health; safe environment; decent jobs; happy healthy family. Instead I'd hear through the MSM and other grapevines that I was one of the liberal elite, while multi-millionaire Dubya was just one of the guys. Bageant's essay makes some of these "accusations" a little clearer, a little more understandable, even if I don't agree that all liberals are this or all liberals are that, any more than all poor Southerners are this or all poor Southerners are that.

Some of Bageant's generalizations make me cringe. He says, for instance, "One of the problems we working class Southerners have is that educated progressive Americans see us as a bunch of obese, heavily armed nose pickers. This problem is compounded by the fact that so many of us are pretty much that." However, the fact that I cringe is probably a sign that I am one of the elite.

He asks where the left is: "The political left once supported these workers, stood on the lines taking its beatings at the plant gates alongside them. Now, comfortably ensconced in the middle class, the American left sees the same working whites as warmongering bigots, happy pawns of the empire....The left should take its cues from Malcolm X, who understood the need to educate and inform the entire African-American society before tackling the goal of unity. Same goes for white crackers."

So what does he think the left should do? Forget about the Democratic party, for one thing. He writes, "Quit voting for that pack of undead hacks called the Democratic Party and ORGANIZE! Howard Dean is just another millionaire Yale frat boy. ORGANIZE! Quit kidding yourself that the Empire will protect professionals and semi-professionals such as you and ORGANIZE! Spend time on a Pentecostal church pew or in a blue-collar beer joint and ORGANIZE! Join the Elks Club and ORGANIZE!”

I think there's a lot of truth in his essay. However, I don't want to spend time in a church pew or in a beer joint, and I certainly ain't gonna join the Elks. I'm not interested. What can I say?

See what you think. For me, the essay was an enlightening view of the “poor, white, and pissed.” 1 comments

1 Comments:

I've come to a point in my life, where I look back on my younger self and reflect on the sparks that ignited my belief and lighted my way. I've been doing this alot as of late... thinking of my younger self. I've been struggling with illness off and on since childhood and it wears on me. Lately I have become very tired, juggling work, family and trying to find a little time for myself that doesn't involve a doctors visit, or chore. In my exhaustion, I've lost something dear to me, With my half open eyes, I cannot find the precious thing that I've misplaced. I've lost my grounding, my direction, and I've wandered far from my path... and now just when I thought I was completely lost, I come across your blog. I hope you don't mind if I dwell here awhile. I may still be lost, but suddenly through your words, I do not feel alone. The day to day thoughts, and experiences that you have so openly shared here, have saved my spark from being completely extinguished.

I drifted away from exploring my beliefs, after I came to a stand still. I came to a point in my life where I felt I needed guidance to further my development. I visited the library, I purchased liturature, I joined a circle... yet I never found the guidance that I needed. Alot of the literature seemed to be based on fluff... many in the circle simply attended for alcohol and sex, neither of which I felt comfortable in partaking. I became frustrated in my struggle to learn more. It was this frustration combined with my exhaustion, that has brought me to the place I am now. I'm 28 and feel as if I've learned absolutely nothing worth while.

As long as I can remember, I've had incredibly vivid dreams, both in sleep and while awake. Visions or flights of fancy... your choice. I don't know what they are, I only know I experience them... and although not always, many times the things I see either come to pass in one shape or another, or have effected my decisions in life. I still experience these moments even now... but I find myself ignoring them or keeping them to myself. I pass them off as my imagination, and find myself later on feeling guilty or regrettful for it. Especially when events happen and I find myself wishing I would have paid more heed. I need to get back on track!
I find myself wondering... how did you get to where you are in faith and belief? Did you have a guide, a particular piece of literature that moved you... an affiliation that helped you in your school of thought?
Perhaps you are simply better at perceiving the world around you, then I.
I'm doubting myself again, wondering why I'm even writing this... I know I can choose anonymous when I post... yet, I'm thinking about deleting this... dismissing it, as I have so many other things recently. I cannot allow myself to continue on in this manner, even if my words are simply stemming from my sleep deprivation. Perhaps I only became lost, because I stopped exploring. After all, you have to leave the beaten path once and awhile, or else you wouldn't be exploring at all, right? Maybe I'm not really lost at all... I'm going to go to bed now, and really get some rest for the first time in years. In the morning, I'm going to do something I haven't done in a very long time... open my eyes.

By  Cell, at 9:13 PM  

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