An American Addiction: ahh the rush of it all!!!

Reading about Palin made me want to share some of my recent thoughts about the upcoming elections. I am aware that I stand to the left of most of America - and apparently most of California since we elected Arnold.
Twice!
I get tired of living in the minority and am shocked at some of the dog eat dog policies that come out of administrations that the majority elect. But being in the minority sometimes is part of democracy.
Even though I legally can live abroad - I choose not to leave the country. I think the main reason I stay here is that I feel like I am in the midst of a giant social experiment. I feel like we as a people are constantly trying to figure out who we are and how we want to be together -- usually in very bold, creative ways.

I've often entertained the idea that if only we had a leader who would take the time to explain complex concepts to mainstream America, rather than spouting ad slogans at them, that the majority would understand they are being economically shafted by the right and vote for the left.

I thought I saw that person in Obama.

For a long time I didn't understand why people watch Judge Judy or Springer - how they got pleasure out of seeing someone berate someone else willingly on TV.

I understood why gay men would walk around like uber-Hulks after decades of oppression but didn't really understand why when I went to Disneyland I saw legions of straight men dressed like tatooed soldiers and driving Hummers.

I didn't understand why in 20 years living in France I never got physically attacked by another person and within the first three months of living back in the US I was called a "Faggot" by a stranger in the street and had a gun held to my head by another - in a tony white neighborhood!

Today my theory is that we, as a people, are really addicted to drama, to adrenaline, to the rush. We love it when the stakes are high. We sell blockbuster killer movies, Grand Theft Auto software and amusement park thrill rides to the entire world. In this addiction there is a salient need for immediacy and little room for thought.

Our foreign policy has been one of "cleaning up the mess" - the Marines, the SWAT team, the COPS Show of the world. We're the bold ones who step in when every other country is sitting around talking policy.

The fact this this approach often serves our expansionist economic and political needs is no secret.

We do have incredibly innovative non-profits doing really interesting work around the world but they rarely make the news. And our government investment in international aid is peanuts compared to many European countries.

In this Pull-yourself-up by-the-bootstraps nation it would stand to reason that most folks in America thus equate "talking policy" to being wimpy, to not being strong. A "war hero"
trumps a university professor. A millionaire wins out over a community organizer ("Just what the hell is that anyway, Myrna?"). A feisty soccer mom with a forked tongue and a rags to riches frontiersman facade wins out over a college educated wonk.

The same goes for"wimpy" instutions: a national health care system that might lose money or public transportation that might need subsidies every year is a proof of failure. But bailing out the oh-so-ballsy mortgage companies is just a tweak in a strong economic policy!

Finally - destructive acts and words are far more stimulating to us than those that build consensus. We did a fair job taking out Hussein but aren't very good at keeping our A.D.D.-riddled national attention on nation-building. We get a much bigger rush out of zinger insults than we do out of interesting conversation - to such a point that our talking heads even cross ethical lines from time to time (Right Mr Imus?). Our prime time focus is on voting people off the island. What kind of reality show would actually show people working together?

There have been some really interesting articles about the construction of heterosexual masculine identity in America and mostly about how it's focused on "Not being a fag". But interestingly studies show straight guys aren't just defending against appearing attracted to the same sex - they are defending against any kind of behavior that may be perceived as soft, gentle, caring or emotional.

And these same guys are running many American institutions: shut down turbo-thugs with suits.

I remember years ago talking with NGO friends who had just spent all day at a UN-sponsored negotiation table in Geneva to bring AIDS meds to Africa. The big player at the table was the US which had recently earmarked a new budget for this. My buddies from all over the world told me of the meager gains they had made in the negotiation. When I asked why, they responded: "Because the Americans are sharks! They're very cunning and they run their administration like a corporation."

It seems to me that we are really at a moment in our history when we get to choose a different way of being in the world. I'm not sure that the majority of Americans are ready for such a big change - I'm not sure anymore if Obama is ready to personify that change.

I yearn for a president who has the balls to say "I don't know", "Let's do the long difficult alliance-building work rather than the rushing in", "Let's turn half of our military into the peace corps - and then send them to the 20% of America who lives below the poverty level."

I'm hoping Obama is that man.