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Got up late this morning.
Jan. 13th, 2011 12:22 pmNo writing yet, and more weirdly and with much more difficulty, no politics. I have skimmed a few stories up on my friendslist and facebook wall, but I have resisted clicking on any links and I have refrained from making any comments...
... if I'm taking a week off politics, can I pause a moment to talk about politics in general? I think I can. And I'm my own boss and I do what I want, so.
Politics are a passion for me -- not the ugly-back and forth between parties but the work of governance, legislation, bills and court rulings and the creation and application of law. It matters to me. I don't know why it doesn't matter to everyone. I understand that politics is nasty and confusing and complex and it feels like no-one on "our" level of the process can make any significant change, and that this is a big turn-off for most people. But I care about politics the way a farmer with a fragile crop cares about the weather: It affects my future, and even if I cannot control it, I can prepare for it.
I care about justice and integrity, little as those things may have to do with politics. I was raised by activists and hippies -- and while these days, my father is a conservative Republican and my mother is a moderate-to-conservative Democrat (I think, my mom plays her cards close to her chest when it comes to politics), they raised me on a constant diet of fractious debate and moral outrage, folk-songs and the power of the people, collected together. Whether they meant to or not, whether they feel the way I do or not, I am a committed liberal today because of the lessons and the logic they taught me to apply in life.
If I was going to pursue a career in a field other than creative writing or education (yes, I am still planning on going to grad school and becoming a professor -- I want back into academia in the worst way), the only possibility would be politics. To unironically fight the good fight, devote myself to candidates or causes I believe in -- maybe to run for office myself, but I doubt it. I'd be happier as a staffer -- a speech writer or PR person or office ninja. I love and am fascinated by the long, slow process of terraforming the nation into a place that fully embodies the ideals it strives towards and provides true and equitable social justice to all people in all ways. Whetehr I pursue it as a career or not, even in small ways I want to be a part of it. Because it will wind up a part of me, whether I want it to or not.
This is going to be an interesting week.
... if I'm taking a week off politics, can I pause a moment to talk about politics in general? I think I can. And I'm my own boss and I do what I want, so.
Politics are a passion for me -- not the ugly-back and forth between parties but the work of governance, legislation, bills and court rulings and the creation and application of law. It matters to me. I don't know why it doesn't matter to everyone. I understand that politics is nasty and confusing and complex and it feels like no-one on "our" level of the process can make any significant change, and that this is a big turn-off for most people. But I care about politics the way a farmer with a fragile crop cares about the weather: It affects my future, and even if I cannot control it, I can prepare for it.
I care about justice and integrity, little as those things may have to do with politics. I was raised by activists and hippies -- and while these days, my father is a conservative Republican and my mother is a moderate-to-conservative Democrat (I think, my mom plays her cards close to her chest when it comes to politics), they raised me on a constant diet of fractious debate and moral outrage, folk-songs and the power of the people, collected together. Whether they meant to or not, whether they feel the way I do or not, I am a committed liberal today because of the lessons and the logic they taught me to apply in life.
If I was going to pursue a career in a field other than creative writing or education (yes, I am still planning on going to grad school and becoming a professor -- I want back into academia in the worst way), the only possibility would be politics. To unironically fight the good fight, devote myself to candidates or causes I believe in -- maybe to run for office myself, but I doubt it. I'd be happier as a staffer -- a speech writer or PR person or office ninja. I love and am fascinated by the long, slow process of terraforming the nation into a place that fully embodies the ideals it strives towards and provides true and equitable social justice to all people in all ways. Whetehr I pursue it as a career or not, even in small ways I want to be a part of it. Because it will wind up a part of me, whether I want it to or not.
This is going to be an interesting week.
