Charley, if you could hear it now

Introduction. Creating this blog was inspired by a re-reading of John Steinbeck's book TRAVELS WITH CHARLEY and his observations of l960 America. Some of my initial postings will take a then-and-now view of various things he said relative to civil rights/racism, immigration, and the environment. There will be a left of center view in these and future postings as timely and hopefully thoughtful inspirations occur. Postings will vary from letter-to-the-editor length to mini essays. Your comments are welcome, supportive or otherwise.


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CHARLEY IF YOU COULD HEAR IT NOW


Fifty years ago, Nobel prize winning author John Steinbeck set out on a voyage of personal rediscovery of America. It was not a sight seeing tour, but rather, as he put it: "I, an American writer, writing about America was working from memory. . . . I knew the changes only from books and newspapers. . . . I had not felt the country for twenty-five years."

Out this came his best selling book, TRAVELS WITH CHARLEY, his French poodle who accompanied him on his three-month circumnavigation of the country. The book was a collection of l960 observations and musings ranging from the pleasantries of sharing beer and brandy with a group of "Canucks" in Aroostook County, Maine, to outrage about the racism he witnessed in New Orleans when it was forced to integrate an elementary school. It was a time when the Cold war and the Soviet Union simplified the task of defining the enemy. Today, we turn to Pogo, the wise cartoon possum, who said in l970, "We have met the enemy and he is us."

The Road from Pleasantville

Tracking the "enemy" between Steinbeck's l960 travels and today parallels somewhat the changing world depicted in the l998 movie PLEASANTVILLE. In that movie the
l950s are characterized as a black and white world of conservatism and conformity. It was a decade highlighted by the political civility of President Eisenhower and Adlai Stevenson, twice his opponent for the presidency, and when the man in the gray flannel suit was the image of that conservatism and conformity. But as the people of Pleasantville are exposed to more adventuresome social mores, often sexually based, the people and the scenes gradually appear in vibrant technicolor until everyone and everything is brightly colorized. Steinbeck's journey came at the juncture of this portrayed monochromatic l950s and the technicolor period that began with the l960s.

Steinbeck started out about six weeks before the Kennedy-Nixon presidential election, yet in his conversations with people across the country he found "no arguments, no discussions" about politics. In driving through North Dakota he commented, "I had been keen to hear what people thought politically, those whom I had met did not talk about it. It seemed to me partly caution and partly a lack of interest, but strong opinions were just not stated." It wasn't until he got to Monterey, California, that he found people willing to have heated arguments about politics--his sisters who were Republican. They accused him of talking "like a communist". He countered that "you sound surprisingly like Genghis Khan". He found a similar political vacuum in listening to local radio stations as he traveled. "And apart from a few reportings of football games, the mental fare has been as generalized, as packaged, and as undistinguished as the food."

A half century later, it is difficult to listen to local radio without being bombarded throughout the day by political talk shows, most frequently hosted by conservatives or libertarians, some with a bit of the thespian within them. If you search hard enough, you might find a liberal host. But regardless of where on the ideological spectrum a talk show may fall, the air waves are now filled with toxic opinions of both hosts and listeners, designed not to make ideological converts so much as to solidify already held beliefs and give listeners the latest talking points. The radio talk shows find echoes from 24-hour cable programs on television, most notably from the usually right wing Fox and the sometimes left wing MSNBC, with the listener ratings of the former far exceeding those of the latter.

From Pluralism to the Tea Party

This change in political atmospherics reflects a broader change in our politics. Steinbeck's political world was one in which we perceived ourselves as a pluralistic nation in which issue conflicts were resolved by bringing together opposing groups to cobble out a compromise solution. No group got all that it wanted all of the time; most groups got something some of the time. Shelby Foote, the Civil War historian, stated that the art of compromise was the genius of our system. But today compromise, certainly as practiced in Washington, too often produces a result that compromises in favor of powerful interest groups such as the National Rifle Association, Wall Street bankers, and hedge fund managers.

It must be said, however, that this 50-year old benevolent, self-perceived image of pluralism did not go unchallenged. A counter view held that there existed a power structure made up of political, military, and economic elites who controlled decision making for their own advantage. There was a "compromise" theory, elite pluralism, that said there was indeed a group negotiating process but the different groups were controlled by their own elites. Other theories/perceptions also evolved. One was hyperpluralism in which there was an uncontrolled proliferation of organized groups and with so many moving, colliding parts the system was being stalemated. Within this complex maze was also found single-issue politics where there was such intensity of feeling on particular issues such as gun control or abortion that a person holding or seeking office was evaluated primarily on where he or she stood on that issue.

Now, 50 years after Steinbeck's travels, it is the time of the Tea Party movement which sprang up in 2009 and backs candidates such as Senate hopefuls Rand Paul in Kentucky who misspeaks too often on issues such as civil rights and oil spills, and Sharron Angle in Nevada who just speaks too often on matters that often transcend human understanding. By many, or most, the Tea Party is perceived as a far right movement where an office holder/seeker is measured by his or her adherence to a basket of anti-government issues such as health care reform, deficits, taxes, immigration, and gun control. To pass the litmus test of acceptability by the various groups that have attached themselves to the movement, one has to accept or be seen as accepting the Tea Party positions on all issues in the basket. To deviate invites attacks. Republican Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts was elected as a darling of the Tea Party but fell from grace when he voted with Senate Democrats on some major issues. Attacks by Tea Party adherents are aimed primarily at left-of-center office holders/seekers, but also traditional conservatives of both parties who fear they may be outflanked at election time by persons farther to the right backed by the Tea Party movement.

In early 2010 there emerged a below-the-radar counter movement, the Coffee Party, which takes a more centrist pro-government view on various issues hoping to attract the support of discontented Democrats, Independents, and moderate Republicans. Organizers of this movement emphasize the need for more civility in political discourse to end what they see as an increasingly nasty, gridlocked system. Instead of using street demonstrations to push their agenda, Coffee Party adherents seek to expand support through the spread of small groups meeting in coffee shops across the country. So far the Coffee Party has been a muted participant in a public discourse increasingly marked by clash and clang.

Capsulized, over the 50 years since Steinbeck and Charley made their journey, our politics has morphed from a system of low decibel, pluralistic politics characterized by civility in discussing opposing views, to one of high decibel, "to the barricades" confrontation. We no longer have the Cold War and the Russians to cement us together. Pogo spoke prophecy. Charley, if you could hear it now.