Republicans have co-opted the term "personal responsibility," but Betsy and I live by that motto rather than just mouthing the words. We're financially responsible and will pay off our modest house years before we retire. And we've planned well and saved for our retirement so that (combined with Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid--progressive programs that we've paid into all our lives), we won't be a burden to our children or society. Pretty much every liberal we know lives in a similar way. The people we know who have overspent and underworked tend to be Republicans. That's been our personal experience and observation.
Betsy and I live a life that is in many ways more "conservative" than most of the Republicans we know. We don't drink, smoke, or do drugs. We hardly ever swear. We don't gamble. We're usually in bed by the time most people are still planning what to do with their evenings, and we're routinely up before sunrise even on the longest days of the year. Betsy and I don't presume that our marriage is extra-super holy while the loving, legal union of two men or two women will somehow lead to the downfall of America. We're faithful and happy and dedicated to our children and looking forward to grandchildren in the not-too-distant future.
"The personal is the political" is a saying I've always liked. To me, these words mean that our personal values influence our political decisions. Someone recently told me that I became a Democrat for the same reason that people arbitrarily choose sports teams to support. She said that I defended Democrats whether they were right or wrong as a reflex, the same way fans root for their team even when they know they aren't as good as their opponents. She must have been talking about the way she chose her political party because she certainly missed the mark on my motives. I'm a Democrat because the values of the Democratic Party connect with my core values. That's a very personal and important choice. As I write later in this book, lots of elected Democrats (including the president) sometimes disappoint me. But the vast majority of elected Republicans often disgust and repulse me. I'll take disappointment over disgust and repulsion any day.
Tales of a Real American Liberal is a collection of often humorous but always serious essays with a liberal point of view rooted in the American ideals of hard work, responsibility, civic-mindedness, patriotism, spirituality, and compassion for my fellow human beings. These essays reflect intense thought about these issues rather than the anti-intellectual, hit-and-run mentality we see in so much of today's right-wing political commentary. Our nation needs essays far more than it needs bumper stickers.
Most important, Tales of a Real American Liberal is a personal exploration and expression of my own most deeply held values--values that took root as I grew up in "real America"--values that taught me a lesson Sarah Palin somehow missed: All of America is real America.
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