Today is my son's eighteenth birthday.

[lumberjack_jeff]

Like any parent, I have aspirations for him. I want him to have access to an education offering the employment tools that will allow him to enjoy his life. I want him to be aware of his goals and values and to be free to achieve the former within the context of the latter. I want the people in his family, his circle of friends and his society to value him and his ability to contribute. I want him to be aware of and have empathy for the struggles of the other members of his society. Although his mom and I are at best agnostic, I want him to be free to seek the spiritual path of his choosing.

I offer this, because I want posters here to understand where I'm coming from when I appear defensive against broad-brush criticism of "white christian men" or various permutations on this theme.

He has not inherited any of the perceived guilt of his father or grandfather. He is no less a human being than any other member of this society. His decision to enlist, work at the machine shop, go to college, put a gun rack in his pickup, a rainbow sticker on his Prius or a Starbucks cup in his Volvo has no relevance to his value as a citizen or as a person. He has as much right to self-actualization as anyone.

I reject the idea that I often see repeated and demonstrated here; combating the social injustice that anyone has faced requires social retribution against those who didn't. I reject it both because that view limits his ability to attain any of the above aspirations I have for him, (including his ability to be empathetic for others) and also because it simply endlessly passes the social injustice around like a hot potato.

When people rail against "ignorant, angry white men and their bigotry, hatred..." a pat on the head and an offhand "I'm not talking about you, dear." is inadequate disclaimer. The harm is done.

The echoes of this self-destructive view reverberate here. A poster recently asked "Is traditional blue collar, working-class code for racist?". Frequently similar arguments are made that those who don't support Hillary must be doing so for reasons of sexism.

Maybe I'm a dreamer. I hope to live long enough that the stereotypes that people promote about my son (and his brothers) are considered as undesirable as any others.

For sure, it'll be a better world when it does.

This election is bringing awareness of sexism and racism front and center. I think there's a distinction to be made between awareness and hypersensitivity.

Hypersensitivity to these issues is contributing to our self-immolation. For those who feel that sexism is the defining issue of our society, an Obama win will be proof positive that our society is inherently sexist. For those who feel that racism is the defining issue of our society, a Hillary win will offer proof of their views.

Those who simply want the best possible society will be subject to a stereotype not of their choosing.

On policy, I'm not a big fan of either of our candidates, however I hope that the main silver lining to this election is that our choosing a woman or a person of color as our leader will reduce the perceived justification that some kinds of race-based and gender-based biases are okay.

[Bicoastal]

1. Selective Service...

....(sigh) :eyes:

[wuushew]

3. At least you get a free razor

might as well get something useful out of the government.

[AZ Criminal JD]

9. Draft ended over 30 years ago

I know news is slow in some parts...

[lumberjack_jeff]

10. The registration did not.

[AZ Criminal JD]

19. Who cares

You have to register to vote and get a drivers license and all sorts of things. So what. There is no draft and will be no draft. Don't try and scare your son with that prospect. Nobody in the military wants or thinks we need a draft. Neither political party wants a draft. Not going to happen, ever.

[Zywiec]

11. You still need to register for the selective service n/t

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. when more realize that we are interconnected

that harm to one hurts all, that we are one, then our behaviors will change.

[lumberjack_jeff]

12. Truer words were never spoken. n/t

[lumberjack_jeff]

4. Shameless kick

I think it's worth talking about.

[kentuck]

5. Very thoughtful...

I would have responded sooner but it disappeared before I could read it.

[TahitiNut]

6. Well, he can't help it that he's "testosterone poisoned"

After all, that happened in utero, right?

:evilgrin:

:hide:

[lumberjack_jeff]

13. There you go, embracing diversity again.

:)

He can't help that y-chromosomal birth defect.

[bigbrother05]

7. Now he can vote

[lumberjack_jeff]

14. He's registered, but sadly his birthday was too late to get a ballot for the caucus. n/t

[Zookeeper]

8. Thank you, Jeff!

I have two teenaged sons who, through their own accident of birth, are "white." They are good people who do not deserve to be punished for the sins of the past, beyond their responsibility to be aware and not perpetuate them.

A**holes come in all colors, nationalities, ethnic groups, sexual orientations and both genders. So do good people. I'm ready to slap the next person who uses a broad brush to condemn others for "faults" they have no control over.

:nuke:

[lumberjack_jeff]

15. You're welcome.

These are the days that try mens souls.

Threads come in two varieties:
1) The SEXISM from ALL the men is outrageous! Women are pissed! Thousands of 'em are calling their media outlets! Don't you dare disagree or I'll call you a woman-hater too!
2) Stop harshing our buzz! We energized kids have waited all of our lives for a celebr... I mean candidate who speaks our language! He's us! He's superficial! He's benign! He looks HOT!

Who do I support? Should I hate women or minorities? Obviously, If I pick one, I must hate the other, right? If I observe that Obamaphilia is unseemly, superficial and more than a little creepy, it's because I'm a poorly-educated blue collar, working class (cough*racist*cough). If I say that Hillary's periodic displays of emotion punctuated by thinly veiled appeals to the sorority, most recently expressed in hyperbolic faux outrage against the patently obvious observation that Chelsea is being used by the campaign, it's because I'm a misogynist.

News flash: The two candidates are powerful and influential grownups who are seeking arguably the most important job in the world. As voters, it is our responsibility to wade through the nonsense and pick one of these people for the job, and hold them accountable for their promises.

This is a nontrivial task because the method the campaigns use to apply bullshit is as close they get to "liberal".

Given the dearth of concrete plans that Obama brings to the table, I'm leaning toward Hillary.

Who knows, Obama could surprise me. Actually, if he wins, he'll surprise everyone because he is an empty vessel into which each voter is pouring his or her aspirations and expectations.

Obama "fans" fear they will be crushed if their candidate loses. They'll be more crushed if he wins, assuming they pay any attention to the (as yet unspecified) policy with which he governs.

I am soooo sick of the gender/race election analysis, i.e. "Men hate women more than minorities. See? CNN says that Hillary doesn't do as well against McCain as Obama does!"

The obvious conclusion is not about the election or about the voters, it's about the poster. In the poster's world view, the stereotype will not tolerate the idea that any factors other than group affinity matter to voters.

[Zookeeper]

17. I was thinking some more about your thread earlier today....

My other concern about the blaming and finger-pointing based on characteristics over which we have no control, is that it will eventually create the kind of problems we are seeing in other parts of the world. Corruption and conflict based on tribalism and grudges held for generations. With the increasingly diverse nature of our country, it becomes more and more important that we see each other as people first, before we start applying labels. I've never been particularly fond of nationalism, but feeling a common bond and investment as U.S. citizens is one way to avoid that tribalism.

And giving our fellow Democrats the benefit of the doubt regarding good intentions would help. At least until someone gives us a reason to doubt them.

(BTW, Rethuglicanism isn't an accident of birth, so, I confess to making broad brush generalizations about them. :P )

Happy birthday to your son!

[lumberjack_jeff]

18. I've reached the same conclusion about the tradeoff between tribalism and nationalism

I think that tribalism is part of the human condition. I think a good case can be made that there was little unrest in the 40's because we had an external enemy to hate. Once that enemy was gone, the tribal identities reasserted itself.

[Hekate]

16. I can't believe I'm only the 3rd Rec. Thank you, Jeff, for being a wise & compassionate Dad...

You've given DU an important message.

Happy birthday, Jeff Jr!

Hekate