Politics
Entries related to things political.
The Hermeneutics of Political Gardening
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sat, 02/11/2012 - 20:01Inch by inch, row by row
Gonna make this garden grow
The words of David Mallett plays on Spotify as I read a section of Hans-Georg Gadamer's 'Truth and Method' about the circular structure of understanding. I started thinking about text criticism of the news stories Google presents to me. Yes, the great Internet filter bubble shapes what I see. 'In Maine, Ron Paul vies to extend Mitt Romney losing streak', 'General gunned down in Damascus', 'Funeral for Powell boys draws 1000-plus in Tacoma, Wash.', 'Romney wins straw poll of Republican conservatives', 'Weak housing has hurt consumer spending', and 'Obama and the birth control controversy'.
What is the context we understand these stories in? How might other people understand these stories, say a century from now as the study the early 21st century in a college history class. How might my ancestors, for example, those that farmed in New Brunswick, Canada after the revolutionary war, understand this.
Pullin' weeds and pickin' stones
We are made of dreams and bones
David Mallett's words drift back in. What is this circular structure of understanding? How does it relate to pullin' weeds and pickin' stones? People have often asked me who aspiring bloggers should read. I usually suggest starting with the essays of E. B. White. His ability to relate his experiences repairing a hen house roof on a saltwater farm in Maine to European politics at the beginning of World War II is remarkable.
Is there something about this circular structure of understanding that relates to current political discourse? It seems as if so much of the political discourse is based on fairly narrow circles of understanding.
For example, in the birth control controversy, Rick Santorum describes birth control as 'something that costs just a few dollars'. Now, if you are using condoms that you buy at a discount in bulk, or perhaps pick up from a free clinic, and only have sex a couple times a month, Santorum may be right, however, the most commonly prescribed birth control pill costs between $100 and $200, depending on where you get it.
Now for someone with a net worth of between $800,000 and $1.9 million, like Rick Santorum, a couple hundred bucks a month might not be a big deal. Yet there are communities here in Connecticut where the media household income is closer to $12,000 a year. A couple hundred bucks a month can be ten to twenty percent of the household income, and perhaps, these are the households that would benefit most from birth control.
Yet all of this brings me back to the filters or bubbles we all live in. We find our views shaped by the media we consume, whether it be the news that Google selects for us, the talking heads on cable news, the inside the beltway advisors, or even our view of what American life is like based on what we see in the backgrounds of sit-coms and police dramas on prime time television.
No wonder there is such divide and rancor in politics today. Maybe it is time to get back to the garden, whether it be the one that Mallett sings about or White writes about.
Deconstructing Half Time in America
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Mon, 02/06/2012 - 21:15My initial reaction when I saw the beginning of the 'Half Time in America' advertisement was to wonder if it was a political advertisement. It seems like a lot of people are still wondering about that. And, while the people behind the advertisement are claiming it was not intended to be political, the people behind the Susan G. Komen decision about Planned Parenthood made similar assertions. In fact, anything related to hot button topics, like abortion or the auto industry will be viewed as political. When you get right down to it, perhaps, everything is political.
So, instead of focusing on a somewhat meaningless discussion of whether or not something is political, it makes more sense to try and understand the underlying messages. The Chrysler certainly had underlying themes that are more inline with President Obama than with his challengers. The American hope, of getting right back up, a hope that Obama used very effectively in his 2008 campaign came through. The idea of working together comes through. Of course that all working together may sound like socialism to some, probably to some of the same people that oppose Government bailouts.
Looking more closely, it seemed like there were other signs in the ad. Clint Eastwood, a Republican, famously quoted by Reagan, "Go ahead, make my day". Reagan is also evoked in the title of the advertisement, "Half Time in America", echoing Reagan's 1984 re-election advertisement "Morning in America".
In the middle of the advertisement there are several black and white photographs, which made me think of Walker Evans depression era photographs in Let Us Now Praise Famous Men.
Like it, or hate it, Half Time in America is an advertisement worth thinking about, talking about and deconstructing. And, that, unlike so many of the ads which try to appeal to our interest in puppies, humor, or sex, but have little worth thinking about, is worth noting.
The C Word
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 02/02/2012 - 20:11Today, a friend of mine left work early to take his sister to the doctor. They think she has cancer. My grandmother died of cancer, my wife's mother died of cancer, and more recently, friends and relatives of mine have successfully fought cancer.
I work at a health center which does incredible work with underserved populations and has a really important early detection program. As a nonprofit organization, we need to stay out of partisan politics. It is difficult these days, because health care has become so politicized.
I work in communications, particularly with social media, so I watch closely when organizations falter in their communications and especially when they fail at social media.
So, with all of this, I've been watching, with morbid fascination, the Susan G. Komen fiasco. There are so many things wrong with this, it is just astounding. Politicians and celebrities have come out to lambast the Komen foundation.
It is tempting to pile on, but there's already too much negative energy around. So, instead, we should look for ways to turn this into something positive.
Part of the Komen foundation's rationale is that they want to make their grants more efficient. A good way to do that is to completely bypass the Komen foundation. Give money directly to Planned Parenthood and other organizations doing cancer screening. Also, consider giving money to organizations supporting research. I'm trying to find the best one to support. It seems like The Breast Cancer Research Foundation may be a better place to donate to.
Working in health care social media, I've gotten to know more about the Mayo Clinic and theirWomen's Cancer Program, and they seem like another organization well worth supporting. They are one of 11 programs that are part of the National Cancer Institute's Specialized Programs of Research Excellence. You can find the other institutions on the Breast SPOREs page.
There is a lot of negative energy around 'The C Word', but we can call cancer by its name, and not get caught up in the negative energy. Instead, we should focus on prevention, through organizations like Planned Parenthood and Federally Qualified Health Centers, and on research through organizations, like those that participate in the National Cancer Institute's Specialized Programs of Research Excellence.
An American Wedding
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sun, 01/29/2012 - 23:01This is America, the land I was born in, the country I love, with its ever shifting traditions as the current inhabitants meeting newcomers. At our best, we welcome newcomers and add their traditions to our own. At our worst we build walls and battle between different groups.
I write this sitting in a hotel in New Market, Virginia, on my way back from my niece's wedding. New Market was a battlefield in the Civil War. My niece's ancestry includes English and French that fled religious persecution in the 1600s. It includes Irish ancestors fleeing famine and seeking a better life.
This weekend, she married a young man from India that she had met in college. On Saturday, there was a Christian Wedding. I've been to many Christian Weddings and this one was a beautiful as so many others that I've been to.
Today, I experienced something very new and different to me. My new nephew-in-law arrive and a Hindu community center to celebrate his marriage to my niece. We threw rose petals as he arrived, we ate nuts, fruits and nougat. There were many other symbolic events in the ceremony, many which I probably missed.
Yet what was most important to me was seeing what I believe makes America strong, the celebration of people of different backgrounds coming together to love and serve one another.
Wordless Wednesday
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Wed, 01/25/2012 - 19:52
