The Great Disconnect

Down in de hood dhey don't get it what honky be doin' 
out in de wide lands where cream 'o de crop be acruin',
while out dhere where dhe green grass meet dhe smooth curb
dhey don't get it what dem po'boys be doin' to disturb
dhe status quo and de way t'ings are
cuz dhey don't get the gravy but only smell it from afar.
You know the state of the country it aint right;
I say you too tight;
You say me too loose.
You act like engine, make me de caboose?
You even got a clue, man?
We gotta make a new plan if we can;
R u hearin' me,
or r u fearin' me?
Shit! now h'yah come do po'. 
Even if I be friend, dey see me foe.

 
Peace and safety be upon them that work hard and do the drill
is what they say out in the wide lands filled with froth and frill,
while in the hood where the stoop step meet the street curb
hoods don't get what honkys skim out suburb.
Out here they're okay with the way things are;
they get the gravy; they drive the car.
They see the way things are as being all right,
and they're comfy being a little uptight.
They don't get loose,
aspiring to drive the engine, not ride caboose.
They have no clue, my friend,
preferring the same old plan, than to begin again.
They're not hearing dhem,
but they are fearing "them."
They say let the Po go--
let them search and seize the po'.
 
Now over in the Beltway everything is fine,
though talking heads strive to make events rhyme
by pontificating waltz in five-four times,
perpetually towing both Party lines,
keeping Libs on Left and Cons on Right:
maintaining constant Left-Right Fight.
Thou shalt not offend me! saith the Lib on the Entitled floor.
Thou shalt not tax me! saith the Con at Liberty's door.
Occupy, Occupy! rings out the Activist refrain.
Fortify, Fortify! cries the Reactionary in our never-ending game.
Don't destroy the middle class! and let them toke on grass!
You rob the middle class with tax! so Elites can sit on their ass!
Out! damned corporate ogres! the Left exhorts.
Oh quit your pouting! the 1% retorts, from their resorts.
Congress gets nothing done, because of you!
Government is the problem! Tippecanoe and TeaParty too.
 
Meanwhile all the masses come and go;
they twitter with glitter of the latest show.
 
Glass half-Full

Mr. Mondale, Roosevelt and Reagan

Walter Mondale tells a story about FDR’s funeral that sharpens our understanding of what it means to be a liberal:
In the spring of 1945, President Roosevelt’s body was being taken from Georgia to Washington on a train. Thousands of Americans cherished the President’s legacy with expressions of respect and mourning as they stood in memoriam near the train tracks and in stations along the way.
Former Vice-president Mondale tells Diane that one such man was asked if he had known the deceased President. The man replied that no, he did not know Mr. Roosevelt, but, the man volunteered: “He knew me.”
A characteristic of great leadership is surely that those who are governed feel a respectful affection along with political and patriotic identification with the leader. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had served Americans in the oval office for twelve years, through a long economic depression and a world war. Americans’ love and fond recall of him were, no doubt, deeply heartfelt on a national magnitude, most acutely on that mournful day in 1945.
Mr. Mondale mentioned the mourner’s response to FDR’s last solemn journey to our capital city. Then he added an eloquent statement that Americans need to know that their President is looking out for them, and holding their best interests at the forefront of his mind, his actions and policies.

Therein, we catch a glimpse of the difference between a liberal and a conservative. Conservatives don’t generally have that need,
or they do not cultivate it, to view the President as some benevolent provider; they would rather do things on their own without the government’s meddling, thank you.
Most conservatives these days will tell you that the President’s job is to keep the government out of the way, so that enterprising, self-sufficient folks can exercise their freedoms without regulatory interference. It’s not the President’s job–not his government’s job either– to give us the warm fuzzies or make sure we are all well cared for. We have dads for that, and God, thank you very much.

So there you have the main difference between conservatives and liberals, aka Democrats and Republicans.
Nevertheless, I must disclose that this Republican would more likely be moved to tears at Mr. Roosevelt’s immense contribution toward our national well-being, than, say, anything that Mr. Reagan did.
Except when he told Mr. Gorbachev to tear down that wall.
That tearing down the wall thing really tears me up.