John Y’s Musings from the Middle: Why I Am a Democrat

Why I am a Democrat.

Heading home from the Democratic National Convention I had a few minutes to kill and decided to type out why I think I’m a Democrat.

Part of it, of course, is inherited—in two senses. Your family’s politics, like your family’s business and religion, tend to have a long shelf life for future generations. It’s easier to go along than buck the family. There’s also a temperamental inheritance. Both major political parties, I believe, attract certain disposition types —characteristics that we largely inherit genetically. No, not a desire for lower taxes or building strong infrastructure—at least not directly. But an inclination to be trusting or skeptical; hopeful or protective. Or just not caring if one side of our jacket collar is flipped up.

Then there are the cultural and temporal factors that help determine our politics. More people who came of age in the 1930s became Democrats. More who came of age in the 1980s became Republicans.
But these are not the interesting or singular characteristics that cause a person like me, after all the more conventional factors are set aside, still to walk toward the democratic team when choosing sides. I think that’s a more deeply personal matter that we don’t take enough time honestly to understand.

Oh, and for the record, I don’t buy all this nonsense about Republicans and Democrats not being able to get along. If that were true, Republicans and Democrats would stop getting married to each other so frequently! Like married couples, we need each other. Each side has strengths and weaknesses and is better together than alone. But also like married couples, a little more understanding of each other (and a good counselor) can go a long way. I mean seriously, if Democrats could do a better job of “mirroring” what we believe we hear Republicans say; and if Republicans could do a better job using “I-statements,” we would be well on our way to a more functional polity. Or at least a fun weekend together. Which is why I am writing about why I am a Democrat. Like most people, it’s not really about ideology. I believe ideology is a byproduct of more core personal qualities and traits we possess. And it’s easier to accept differences if we understand these differences  are more fundamental to who we are and impermeable— rather than merely malleable ideas that, like a fly, we seem merely to have randomly alighted on. And so with that intro, here goes.

For me, I am a Democrat because I am a “tinkerer”, a “wobbler,” and a “blender.” And on most days, these are positive traits, at least in my mind. And they are at my core.

By tinkerer, I mean I can’t help leave things alone. I am never satisfied and always trying to improve things—whether at home or work or me personally —or even others around me. I look at things and ask, “So how can this be improved and why hasn’t it been?” I am not good at taking victory laps. I am also, unfortunately, not very good at enjoying things as they are. And often they are just fine and tinkering with them  only makes matters worse. But if you are a tinkerer, you are going to tinker. And when you let a tinkerer start thinking about politics, he or she is going to want to fiddle with policies and procedures because they believe they can make government function better. There is no bad motive and we really believe we are helping. We just like to tinker.. Republicans, by contrast, seem content to leave well-functioning things alone and go away for the weekend and enjoy themselves. Or just demand tearing the whole mess down if it’s not working well. And blame the tinkerers for creating the problems in the first place.

Wobblers are people who are wobbly on where they stand on issues. Hence the name wobbly. They are not likely to be seen making a scene at a restaurant or taking time to write a scathing letter to the editor about how their side is right and the other side is dead wrong—and not only dead wrong but morally depraved to boot. Wobblers are a little flaky but mostly curious and like to avoid certitude because, in their mind, it means they will stop learning new things. There is a joy and an adventure in the process of trying to make sense of our world. And wobblers lack any sense of urgency at having to arrive at any verdicts quickly. Or ever. Conclusions, to a wobbler, mean the game is over. These wobblers find the most empowering phrase they’ve ever discovered to be “I’m not sure” and are almost always Democrats. And wobblers tend to frustrate the heck out of people who find the most empowering phrase they’ve ever discovered be “I am sure.” And who are almost always Republicans.

And then there are the blenders. Blender does not connote a “change-to-fit-in” or weak personality. For me blenders are more open and gregarious types who consider interacting with different people and cultures to be the spice of life. They slip into and out of (blend) different groups and circumstances with ease. They are rarely ever the person in the picture who looks like the “odd man out.” That person in the picture who the odd-man-out is usually the one who looks slightly ill-at-ease and who owns the building. And is a Republican. Blenders want to experience life as broadly as possible and they have an easy time adopting the Ralph Waldo Emerson admonishment, “Every man is in some way our superior.and has something to teach me” The downside for these blender types is they sometimes forget they are part of a group themselves– and, as Emerson pointed out, have a thing or two that others should envy and can learn from. Blenders typically get more excited walking into an ethnic restaurant in a strange city than into a country club dining room at home. And let’s face it, if you ever found yourself in an ethnic restaurant in a strange city, who would you rather have order for you, Barack Obama or Mitt Romney?

And so as I leave Charlotte I wave good-bye to my fellow tinkerers, wobblers and blenders. We aren’t very good at organizing, planning or uniting. That’s more of a Republican thing. But we do know how to have a good time. And even though we hugged and cried and swore we’d keep in touch, we probably aren’t as likely to keep in touch as the republicans who exchanged business cards at the farewell RNC networking event. But we forgive a lot, too, and are able to laugh at ourselves.

And so it’s for all those reasons that, I suppose (but am not certain), I am a Democrat.