Penny Thoughts: The Not-So-United States of America

Even though the season of “cheer” and “peace on earth” is supposed to continue today, it seems that the reality is that our great Nation is yet in the throes of a division which has spread beyond most accepted cultural boundaries that generally defines a society – economic, social, religious, and political.

From my perspective this division actually began when the Democratic party had believed that its anointed one, Hillary Clinton, was going to be swept into the White House on the wings of an overwhelming victory.  That did not happen and the reaction of her supporters, the Democratic National Committee, the mainstream media, and the Democratic members of Congress has been no different than a kid who lived in my neighborhood when I was growing up.

You probably know this kid.  His name was Richie Moncrief and he is probably with the angels now.  I say you know him because I am willing to bet that there was a “Richie Moncrief” you grew up with.  If Richie lost at something no matter what it was, Richie would cry, “It’s not fair!” and he would do everything in his power – no matter how limited – to discredit either the competition or the competitors.  “You cheated!”  “The rules are wrong!” “You did not give me a chance!”  Sound familiar?

If you look more closely at the “logic” used in the recent “impeachment” proceedings Richie has been there in spirit, if not in fact.

Let me be clear.  I am a Libertarian and a member of that party.  The two major parties have designated me an “independent”.  But I am an AMERICAN first!  I have witnessed this travesty of an egregious attempt to dismantle our Constitution at Richie Moncrief’s hands.  It has been duplicitous, furtive, and insincere at best, and highly destructive at worst!

The cast of characters who have weaponized the impeachment process comes right out of a Muppets episode – Pelosi, Schiff, Nadler, Swalwell.  Note that they all, ALL, come from either California or New York.  For me that speaks volumes! Oh, and let me add to this list “our” distinguished Representative, the Ivy Leaguer from Selma, Honorable Terri Sewell, who has stated, “No one comes to Congress to impeach a president,” and yet she boycotted President Trump’s inauguration in 2017!  For politicians there seems to be no such admonition that “actions speak louder than words”.  Not for Richie Moncrief either!

However, I digress, as my fantastic wife, Elizabeth, is wont to say when she is delivering one of her impromptu treatises on whatever topic she has been researching – and believe me, she is one impressive researcher!

The digression was not intended to be a distraction as I wanted to share some interesting research which may help explain some of the division in which America is presently immersed.

In an analysis by Professor Eric Schnurer in the July 7, 2017, publication of the US News.com titled “A Tale of Urban and Rural: How Environmental Factors Affect our Politics”.  In this piece Dr. Shnurer treats a theory of Oliver Sng who posits that population density has a bearing on one’s approaches to life.

In short, higher density population areas have distinctly different characteristics than populations whose density is less.  Schnurer summarized Sng’s conclusions in the following fashion:

“The basic point is this: Environmental factors – like community size and density – not surprisingly affect the strategies organisms (like, say, people) adopt, not just for “life-history,” which Sng studied, but also for every other aspect of dealing with their interactions with others. This includes fundamental questions about how to structure those dealings – centralized or decentralized, coercion by law or through social ostracism – and issues that flow from these such as taxes versus charity (our densely-populated liberal areas rely more heavily on the former, more rural communities on the latter), attitudes toward crime and terrorism, receptivity to immigration and trade, regulation of business activities or firearms, in short virtually everything.”

Thomas Jefferson suggested the same in his observations on population overcrowding: “When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe.”

Must admit, I love Jefferson for a number of reasons, not the least of which is this quotation.

May I suggest you perform a simple social experiment for yourself sometime: reflect on the attitudes and approaches of those whom you know from high population areas and compare them with the attitudes and approaches of those whom you know from low population areas.

You may find that Schnurer’s conclusions, as Jefferson’s, can serve as foundations of our National division, which has been compounded by the dangerous actions of the Democrats.

As the old Latin phrase says, quod erat demonstrando, or as you mathematicians like to note “QED”…that which was to be demonstrated.