WHY I AM A DEMOCRAT When my Father was discharged from the military following World War II, he arrived in Chicago with an eighth-grade parochial education and the skills to fly planes or manage crops and domesticated animals. Assisted by the G. I. Bill, he attended night school classes in accounting. Certification in this field later led to attaining the position of comptroller in an auto parts company. Veterans preferences through the G. I. Bill also helped him purchase his first house - his dream design - at the age of 37 years. Though the bill had bipartisan support, it was sponsored and passed by the Democrats and signed into law by a Democrat. When my mother, whom had coped with many years of depression, was no longer able to care for herself independently - the money was gone - my income inadequate to cover costs, there was a program that allowed her to live with others in a safe and well-maintained facility. This program is called SSI. It is an evolved extension of the Social Security Act, originated by the Progressives and passed by the Democrats over fierce opposition. When my son came into this world in November, 1993, Mom was able to stay home with his royal infancy for three months with pay. Though we were compelled by modern economics to use day care for the next ten years, The Family Leave Act gave him a great start. This legislation was sponsored by the Democrats and signed into law by President Clinton. When post mortem family chess playing threatened a meager inheritance of mine, there was a Farm & Home Mortgage program which allowed our family to purchase our first home with a very modest down payment ($6,500). I was 44. No single party can claim credit for this but long term mortgages with low down payments first became widely available following the New Deal, which were programs created by and enacted by the Democrats. Nineteen years later, I am still here. When I was laid off following a tumultuous merger in 2002, I was unemployed for seven months, carrying alone a mortgage in a high-cost urban area. Unemployment compensation was crucial in this transition and it allowed me to save my beloved home, the only thing I had left intact at the time. Unemployment compensation was the brainchild of the Progressives and the labor unions of the 1930s. The structure was enacted by the Democrats. When I was a gawky post-adolescent college student, the Republican leaders of the time vilified anyone who disagreed with them, characterizing us as radic-libs, American chickens, militant feminists, nattering nabobs of negativism and so on. We should be arrested, fired upon, monitored, jailed or compelled to move to the Soviet Union. This hasnt changed much. The opposition accused a sitting President of murder and felony drug smuggling. A United States Senator stated in a public forum the President isnt his Commander-in-Chief. Those who disagree with those holding the most money and power are un-American traitors. Despite being a native Chicagoan, I needed to learn more about power and money. All of this REALLY offended me - then and now. The needlepointed quip on my kitchen wall isnt inscribed: My way or the highway. I haven’t forgotten.
Posted on: Mon, 03 Nov 2014 18:17:45 +0000
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