Dad to son: Eat right, study hard, vote well

(First published as a community column in The Huntsville Times on October 12, 2008)

Dear Eldest Son,

By now, hopefully you've received your absentee ballot for your very first presidential election. It's your ticket to full-fledged citizenship, so try not to lose it beneath that Mt. Everest-sized laundry pile on your dorm floor.

Yes, you must put an actual stamp on it and mail it the Cro-Magnon way. No, you can't text your selection in, nor can you vote on Facebook.

Congratulations! You're about to make history right out of the gate by helping to elect either the first African-American President or the first female Vice-President in our nation's history. You know who I'm voting for and why, but so what? I expect you to own your vote, just like you do all the other Big Decisions you're making these days.

Still, may I pass on a few political pearls as you approach this important milestone? Just consider it another long, cool drink from that "font of wisdom" that you've been lucky enough to draw from all these years.

First things first: conservatives versus liberals. G.K. Chesterton once wryly observed, "The business of progressives is to go on making mistakes. The business of conservatives is to prevent mistakes from being corrected." So, everyone has a role to play it seems. But it appears to me that neither of these political philosophies has the correct answer every time.

Hard-core ideologues divide the world into nice, neat black and white categories. Then real life suddenly intrudes, and pragmatism eventually rules the day. Each side likes to demonize the other, but some of the best solutions are ones that are hammered out on the anvil of compromise. Our Founding Fathers designed a system that would be perpetually at loggerheads, and, frankly, they liked it that way.

Yeah, I know, you won't discover that little truth in your typical political ad or below-the-belt email forward. Those aim for the gut, not the head. They whip low-information voters into an emotional frenzy and impart the same buzz as Saturday night professional wrestling: Johnny Be-Good-Always Patriot versus Ivan the Terrible, Commy-Loving Spawn of Satan.

Don't fall for it. Soak up as much information as you can and read widely, right, left and center. Above all, for the love of God and humanity—think past the end of your nose.

Speaking of God, please remember you'll be electing a president, not a preacher. Oh sure, some say that if Jesus Christ were here in America today that he would endorse Brand X because that party embodies his ideals and teaching better than Brand Y.

But considering how scripture portrays the founder of Christianity as more of an anti-establishment type (the real Maverick perhaps?), I'm pretty sure that if Jesus could somehow score an interview with Katie Couric, he'd probably tell both our major political parties to take a short hike off a long cliff—but to "go in peace," of course.

Power-hungry men have been dressing up Jesus and other religious leaders in fancy clothes and pimping them out for their own political purposes for centuries. Shame on them! And shame on us for being gullible enough to fall for it! Don't let anybody ever convince you that sincere people of good faith—patriots all—can't have differing political views.

Remember, too, that your personal politics may evolve over time as you—and the world—change. Look at each candidate and ask this question: Who has the best experience, skill set, intellect and temperament for the challenges that we presently face?

Yes, politics is a spectator sport, but, believe it or not, it's more important than Bama versus Auburn. Lives, literally, can hang in the balance. Still, regardless of the outcome, our country will survive because stout-hearted men and women will continue to get up every day, show up on time and follow through.

That reminds me: Good citizenship begins with tending your own garden. So get plenty of rest, eat right, exercise, study hard for your midterms and pray like mad.

Roll Tide, and God bless America.

Warmest regards,

Dad

©2008 Dr. Michael Brown/20/40-Something. All Rights Reserved.