Why Was I Ashamed of Being Poor?
I would not have said I was prejudiced, certainly not against people who are poor. I’ve been poor myself, and I did not see my lack of resources as being indicative of shortcomings in my character. I would not have said my low net worth was reflective of my low worth as a person.
When my financial situation improved, I continued to believe that poor people, in general, were the products of a number of misfortunes — the lack of inherited wealth, certainly, but also the circumstances of their inherited social class, their upbringing, their culture, and untold other influences…
Republicans are better at politics. It’s not even a contest. They’re better at dividing and conquering their rivals when they’re in power. And when Republicans are in the minority, they’re better at obstructing the Democrats’ agenda. They’re better at appealing to and mobilizing their base. They’re better at closing rank and voting in lockstep when it comes to their core priorities as a party. Most importantly, they’re better at creating a long-term strategy and seeing it through to the end.
Right, so that means it’s not the official national language. And, yes, it’s true that some 78 percent of the U.S. population do exclusively speak English at home. About 230 million people. Impressive! So, admittedly, that does make English the sort of de facto national language of these quasi-United States. But it’s not the official national language.
