of a friend. I am close friends with some of my former high school teachers (I met them in their first year teaching...they weren't much older then, and are far less older, now.) My old civics teacher has me included on an email list, and this came through, yesterday. I thought it was worth sharing, and the writer, "Ron", said yes, go for it.

Thank you for this latest Hillary news. I have just returned from a month in Scotland and France talking with university professors,book store owners, writers, chefs, sailors, North Sea oil field workers, IT people, artists etc. I have a renewed feel about how the world views us and how we fit into the European world view. As Mark Twain said: 

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.”

 Hillary certainly is a warrior for the status quo, the American political establishment she represents so well. We can feel secure about that. The trains will continue to run on time and their will be little upset to the "Military/Industrial Complex" and imperial overstretch, (as a student of history you know how that ends). Drone strikes (one of our biggest exports) will be assured to continue under one of the most hawkish "Neo-Democrats" currently in power; the "permanent war economy" will not be shaken. We won't have crazy man Trump in power and as liberals, who felt so good about voting for a man of color last time now we can feel good about expanding our good will on the gender front too. I can hear the drum rolls softly in the back ground as I wrap myself in the flag and conventional wisdom just now.

 The hope of Universal health-care that your daughter enjoys in France, along with ALL the rest of the first world will not happen   because it is "politically impossible" as Hillary has stated. No wonder she attracted so much funding from the average citizen and packed stadiums with up to 60,000 people! Oh, excuse me, that was Bernie, my mistake.

 But you might counter, "she did win the most delegates and popular votes fair and square". Yes, if we don't count all of the registered independent voters who were not allowed by the "Democratic" party to vote in "Their" primaries across the country, or count the "Super delegates", the true power brokers within the party or the fact that the "Democratic" party would not allow RoseAnn DeMaro, director of National Nurses United to be one of Bernie's 5 delegates that he was allowed to choose,and along with the warning to him not to propose any other "labor people" as delegates to "their" convention. Ah, that sweet smell of democracy at work.

 With an expansive vision such as hers we know that we can maintain the barricades against crazy ideas (universal health care et.al.) and focus on the American Experience and the myth of "American exceptionalism" that she will continue to perpetuate, (Que the flag waving jingoism, roll the credits of the multinational corporate supporters) we want those folks in Omaha to feel secure out their on the open plains. Damn! We can all sleep well at night.

In conversation back and forth this morning, he gave me a little background:

I came from working class roots. Because of the stellar educational system in Calif. at that time and the fact that my dad made a "living wage" i was given opportunities. Those are both gone now.

Over the last 5 years or so I have heard interviews with both Al Gore and Jimmy Carter, independently of each other, where they both stated that Congress is so broken and dysfunctional that the kind of change we need to save our democracy will not come from them but from people in the streets demanding their democracy back. Those two guys are not radicals!

I have not decided how I am going to vote. It won't be for Hillary! I may write in Bernie or vote for Jill Stein the Green Party candidate. Funny, we don't hear her mentioned or given air time on MSM, not even those "liberals" on PBS.

I was a war resister in the streets during Viet Nam. I sent my draft card back to the draft board and told them no thanks. The streets are where all real change has always happened. (see Howard Zinn's history of the U.S.) 

Lawrence, tell your friends to get in the streets. Occupy was a wake up call. Black Lives Matter is another one. The $15 minimum wage movement is another one.

Keep in touch. I hope to see you at the barricades. Cheers to my "Fellow Travelers"!

In solidarity - ron

And just now, another huge tome, trying to bring my civics teacher's daughter into the fold (she wants a woman president.) Too big to to post here, but it looks like a concentrated wealth of bullet points about Hillary. Off to mine it for gold.