H
Harry F. Dope
Guest
Where Is Obama's Small Town America? USA Thomas D. Segel
April 19, 2008
I really don't know where a person would find Barak Obama's "Small Town
America". I know that I have not viewed that kind of world from my own
vantage point...and I have lived in this so-called "Small Town America" for
the past 35 years.
In political remarks that are burning up the Internet, leading the dialog of
talk shows and firing up political pundits everywhere, the topic is Obama,
speaking in San Francisco. He said,
"You go to some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of
small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and
nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration
and the Bush administration and each successive administration has said that
somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's
not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or
antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti- immigrant sentiment or
anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."
Well, I don't think small-town Pennsylvania is too much different from
small-town Exeter, California or small-town Cowiche, Washington or my
small-town of Harlingen, Texas. All small towns are relatively the same.
First of all, you know your neighbors. You know the town's strengths and its
weaknesses. You know the leaders and the followers. There is teamwork to
assure survival. There are helping hands for those in need.
Yes, there are guns in most small towns. People in many small towns like to
hunt. There are also fishing poles, because the people also like to fish.
Most of all, they love the Constitution...and the Second Amendment.
Small town America has an abundance of churches and the pews are filled on
Sunday mornings. But, this never happens out of bitterness but because of
the love of God.
People in small town America have antipathy for people who aren't like them?
I think not. You will find more human kindness, caring hearts and real
compassion in small towns than you will ever discover inside those concrete
jungles such as Washington DC.
Security concerns for the nation cannot be shrugged off as anti-immigrant
sentiment and the only place you hear anti-trade sentiment is out of the
mouths of politicians.
Jobs come and jobs go in America. When I moved to the Rio Grande Valley of
Texas the main work force was agriculture oriented. Those not involved with
farming were in the textile and clothing- manufacturing field. The region
had a historic 12% to 17% unemployment rate.
Well, that was 35 years ago...and guess what!!!!! Most of those jobs are
gone. The agriculture business is now half of it's former self. All of the
textile and clothing plants have closed.
Did small town Rio Grande Valley, Texas become bitter? I think not. In fact,
today, most of our Valley small towns have grown. Tourism, call centers,
service industries, discount shopping malls and construction have replaced
the lost jobs...and our unemployment hovers in the area of 5%. All of this
happened because small town folks worked together and not because of Big
Brother Washington.
And what about our supposed antipathy for those who are not like us? What
about that charge of anti-immigrant sentiment?
We didn't find much help coming from Washington politicos to correct those
"so- called" problems. In Harlingen, religion stepped forward to meet a
need. The Ministerial Alliance joined as one and created a human service
organization called Loaves and Fishes. What started out as a soup kitchen
has grown into a one square block facility that, each day, feeds hundreds of
homeless and needy people, who come primarily from other locales. It
provides shelter for those needing a place to rest. It has family emergency
assistance, a crisis center, job training, helps obtain medical care,
clothing for the needy and provides offices for a variety of government
service organizations. Do you really think this happened out of bitterness?
We know times are tough for many people. That was understood when we created
our Valley-wide food bank. Tons and tons of food are provided by companies,
churches and through individual donations. These are distributed to any and
all who suffer from hunger.
These are local, antidotal examples of small town America, but they exist in
similar forms across the United States. This is not the view of the country
seen by Obama. It is the view as seen by other people who live in small
towns everywhere.
Small town people are different from those who dwell in large cities. They
are more self-reliant. They do not keep their hands out to Washington
pleading for our government to supply their daily bread.
Sure, small town America struggles. But, across the country these rural
communities still manage to endure. They don't do it looking to politicians
such as elitist Socialists like Barack Obama. They know who the leaders are
in their communities...and they know the followers.
They prosper through self-determination, expanding their vision, and
thinking beyond their boundaries. They plant new ideas and nurture them.
Most of all they think young, seek new ideas and involve the entire
community in civic action. Often they take risks, and if they fail, try
again. Most of all they share in the town's ownership, not in bitterness,
but with pride.
I doubt Barack Obama understands these small town realities. I doubt if he
wants to.
--
"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno."
April 19, 2008
I really don't know where a person would find Barak Obama's "Small Town
America". I know that I have not viewed that kind of world from my own
vantage point...and I have lived in this so-called "Small Town America" for
the past 35 years.
In political remarks that are burning up the Internet, leading the dialog of
talk shows and firing up political pundits everywhere, the topic is Obama,
speaking in San Francisco. He said,
"You go to some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of
small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and
nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration
and the Bush administration and each successive administration has said that
somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's
not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or
antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti- immigrant sentiment or
anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."
Well, I don't think small-town Pennsylvania is too much different from
small-town Exeter, California or small-town Cowiche, Washington or my
small-town of Harlingen, Texas. All small towns are relatively the same.
First of all, you know your neighbors. You know the town's strengths and its
weaknesses. You know the leaders and the followers. There is teamwork to
assure survival. There are helping hands for those in need.
Yes, there are guns in most small towns. People in many small towns like to
hunt. There are also fishing poles, because the people also like to fish.
Most of all, they love the Constitution...and the Second Amendment.
Small town America has an abundance of churches and the pews are filled on
Sunday mornings. But, this never happens out of bitterness but because of
the love of God.
People in small town America have antipathy for people who aren't like them?
I think not. You will find more human kindness, caring hearts and real
compassion in small towns than you will ever discover inside those concrete
jungles such as Washington DC.
Security concerns for the nation cannot be shrugged off as anti-immigrant
sentiment and the only place you hear anti-trade sentiment is out of the
mouths of politicians.
Jobs come and jobs go in America. When I moved to the Rio Grande Valley of
Texas the main work force was agriculture oriented. Those not involved with
farming were in the textile and clothing- manufacturing field. The region
had a historic 12% to 17% unemployment rate.
Well, that was 35 years ago...and guess what!!!!! Most of those jobs are
gone. The agriculture business is now half of it's former self. All of the
textile and clothing plants have closed.
Did small town Rio Grande Valley, Texas become bitter? I think not. In fact,
today, most of our Valley small towns have grown. Tourism, call centers,
service industries, discount shopping malls and construction have replaced
the lost jobs...and our unemployment hovers in the area of 5%. All of this
happened because small town folks worked together and not because of Big
Brother Washington.
And what about our supposed antipathy for those who are not like us? What
about that charge of anti-immigrant sentiment?
We didn't find much help coming from Washington politicos to correct those
"so- called" problems. In Harlingen, religion stepped forward to meet a
need. The Ministerial Alliance joined as one and created a human service
organization called Loaves and Fishes. What started out as a soup kitchen
has grown into a one square block facility that, each day, feeds hundreds of
homeless and needy people, who come primarily from other locales. It
provides shelter for those needing a place to rest. It has family emergency
assistance, a crisis center, job training, helps obtain medical care,
clothing for the needy and provides offices for a variety of government
service organizations. Do you really think this happened out of bitterness?
We know times are tough for many people. That was understood when we created
our Valley-wide food bank. Tons and tons of food are provided by companies,
churches and through individual donations. These are distributed to any and
all who suffer from hunger.
These are local, antidotal examples of small town America, but they exist in
similar forms across the United States. This is not the view of the country
seen by Obama. It is the view as seen by other people who live in small
towns everywhere.
Small town people are different from those who dwell in large cities. They
are more self-reliant. They do not keep their hands out to Washington
pleading for our government to supply their daily bread.
Sure, small town America struggles. But, across the country these rural
communities still manage to endure. They don't do it looking to politicians
such as elitist Socialists like Barack Obama. They know who the leaders are
in their communities...and they know the followers.
They prosper through self-determination, expanding their vision, and
thinking beyond their boundaries. They plant new ideas and nurture them.
Most of all they think young, seek new ideas and involve the entire
community in civic action. Often they take risks, and if they fail, try
again. Most of all they share in the town's ownership, not in bitterness,
but with pride.
I doubt Barack Obama understands these small town realities. I doubt if he
wants to.
--
"Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno."
