I haven’t posted a diary in a while. But, today I read Romney’s tirade against what he perceives to be the voting left; I am here to report: I am not a victim.
Follow me, because I want to tell you all a story.
I am a web developer in New York City. I work in one of the most exciting fields at one of the most exciting times in history. I take nothing for granted. I have worked my entire life to get to where I am at today. My story begins over twenty years ago as the oldest child on a dairy farm in upstate New York.
In those days, life was simple. My life plan was to grow up, milk cows, repair broken equipment, cut the hayfields three times a year, and fill the corn silo. When the old man sold the farm, we were milking around 45-50 cows, I can’t quit remember. To this day, that was the saddest day of my life. But not the worst. I've come realize that. I think I was supposed to go work in a factory, like international paper or GP, or become a forest ranger, or whatever it is you are supposed do if you like the outdoors, 18, live in a very rural area, and feeling a little lost in the world.
But I am not a victim.
Instead, I joined the Navy. There I stayed for six years. I won’t get into my time there, but suffice to say, my experience there was invaluable. In six years, I advanced to E-6. A feat extremely difficult to accomplish, and after six years, I left. I was supposed to stay in the service for twenty years, retire, and become a government contractor.
But I am not a victim.
You see, I had goals. I wanted to go off in the world and be the best that I could be, but I didn’t know what I wanted to be the best at. My next step was going to Bard College, a place that has shaped and molded me, and given me the tools I have today. I have no words great or small to quantify or qualify what Bard has done for me.
All of this because I refused to be a victim.
But you know what? There are victims in this world. There is some pretty fucked up shit that goes on and that is why I vote for democrats. Like Soon-to-be-Senator Warren said: “The system is rigged.” It is rigged. I have seen it over, and over, and over.
And you know what else? I know this will come as a shocker, but people vote for democrats for reasons other than receiving a paycheck. Some of us feel that needless wars a bad idea. Some of us feel that personal liberties, and the choices we make, are individual choices and not the choice of the State (or church). Some of us feel, speaking of church, that the state and the church should not be married. Some of us know that sometimes, shit happens. Sometimes there’s a drought. Sometimes you lose a job. Sometimes something terrible happens to you, and the proper first response would not be to further victimize a true victim. And sometimes, we just get old. Yes, unbelievable I know. How dare we get old to the point where we can’t work. It’s a son of a bitch saving for retirement when your biggest concern is how to replant for the next year because a flood just took out 40 acres of your 200 acre farm.
Despite all the things going against me, I have led a pretty good life so far. But, I've never forgotten that it could have been worse. Yes, I worked hard. But it wasn't all hard work. I am not so naive as to think it was "all me." It was not.
Romney is a dick. He can piss off, and I challenge him or anyone else to say to my face: “Government has a responsibility to care for me”, because of they did, I will plant my size twelve so far up their ass they will think there mouth is about to give birth to a boot.