The Native Iowan

It’s always good/ all ways good to visit the USA.

I departed from this land in January 1981. Green and keen, young and quite un-learned. I was not an international traveler at that time. I was a back-packer more used to hitching a ride than boarding a plane.

Over half my life has been spent living “elsewhere”. Somewhere else, not the USA.

My early, sporadic visits back were normally punctuated by being shocked by change. By reverse culture shock.

Trips “home” were originally every two or three years. A lot can happen in a few short years.

As my visits “back-home” became more frequent the changes were less drastic. Like when you have young kids – while they are around you do not notice their change/ growth. Go away a year or two and they grow and change amazing amounts.

Now, one of the things I have learned is the change is not always what may be perceived. What I mean here is that often the change was me, not the land-I-left. The place called “home” did change but not as much as I.

In 1981 I was a ill-educated, unexposed bleeding heart liberal. What could I have known at the tender age of 23?

In 2018, 37 years later, I think of the Jackson Brown song…   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0GhjlmlEwQ

One thought I have often these days deals with the social unrest between The Police and The Community. Nowadays there is something called racial-profiling. There is an erroneous idea that if you are not white you have a greater percentage-chance of being caught up with the Police. The facts don’t support this but that does not stop the world from believing such.

Throughout my life “Profiling” has played a huge part. My long hair, ear-ring(s), less than white family, tattoos, et al have continuously led to situations where I was “profiled”, and often in a negative way. It still happens all the time.

My approach when being profiled has always been to smile, disarm the profiler by being open and honest. The times when I have been instructed by those in authority, I always complied willingly and quickly. I habitually say yes Sir and no Ma’am, thank you and please. I was raised to not be rude. To show respect.

I have learned to “keep a civil tongue”. I have been detained, searched, hassled, shaken-down, even accosted. I have never been hand cuffed, never been arrested or spent a night in Jail.

I have wandered into many bad, bad neighborhoods – in a number of different countries. I kinda gravitate to the seedier side of town. I like low-rent stripper-bars. Those poorly lit and foul-smelling pubs one finds along the waterfront. Those basement bars found in lonely alleyways. I still wander looking for likely hangouts.

And though I have met “situations” of all sorts, I have never been “taken”, abused, lost nor damaged. And I think it’s because I do keep a civil tongue.

As I visit this land of my birth in 2018, after all those years and travels and experiences, I can still be shocked by the changes I find. Very much a part of it is an undefinable tension. A herd mentality kinda gig where folks do what they do with little thought. A Owellian weirdness.

One thing I am struggling with is the Toxic nature of White Maleness. The idea that racism and profiling is bad but, we profile all white males. We can’t profile black or brown or green males because that would be racist. But its OK to profile every white male as toxic.

???? !!!!

Did I miss something?

And the idea that Socialism is even worth discussing… ???? !!!!

Sure, FREE STUFF is attractive but not real. We know that free stuff is just a slogan, a dream, but we clamour to climb on the bandwagon none the less. Do we really think a new, different result can be realised after so many failed attempts… ???? !!!!

30-year-olds get evicted by parents. Teens divorce their parents because they are too strict. Elderly can’t afford to eat, vets live hopelessly homeless while illegal entry to the US is encouraged and welcoming such is declared a duty? A guy wearing a red hat can be beaten by a crowd while those watching applaud. Police are refused service, A huge franchise business closes for a day to give employees “cultural training”. Millionaire athletes disrespect the National Anthem… ???? !!!!

Freedom of speech is encouranged, but only when it agrees with the herd mentality… ???? !!!!

I am shocked, yes, and confused.

Maybe we should all go back to being ol-fashioned style respctful? To keeping a civil tongue?

Welcome back to the USA… a diverse and changing land.

Smiles