CoffeeCat (18,139 posts)
7. I come from a conservative, Catholic nut job home...
My father was so conservative that he railed against the Americans With Disabilities
Act, because he was angry that the government mandated that he make the restrooms
in his businesses accessible to the disabled. Never mind that my mother, his wife,
had polio and will likely be in a wheelchair in her twilight years.
My father used to make fun of the homeless. He used to make fun of me for caring
about the homeless and the poor. He once asked me if I'd like to go for a ride
in his Porsche, "to see how the other 95 percent live."
My father was a bigot, unable to even hold a conversation with anyone who was
not white. He literally would leave the room. He once told me that he did try
so hard to hire an African American person--but they were lazy. He operated
businesses for thirty years and only hired one non-white person.
I remember when I was eight, my father telling me that I wasn't allowed to be
angry in our house. I told him that was unhealthy--and I smashed my Snoopy
garbage can and said, "See. It's ok to be angry. You get it out and then you
feel better."
I knew there was something very, very wrong with them when I was in elementary
school. When I was ten, they left me home alone and I caught a National Democratic
Party telethon on television. I called in and donated $10. My father practically
blew a gasket. I knew then that being a bigot, an elitist, a selfish fool and a myopic,
cruel human being--were not for me.
Some of us grow up in hell--raised with "conservative values" and some of us escape.
Really?
I come from a bi-political home, Father was Republican Mother was Democrat, Catholic also.
My Father would be considered Conservative, he owned a couple of bars when we lived in NY, he's the 1 who taught me to tip service people well, my Dad had a soft spot for the underdog, he lent people money when they needed it, he'd buy people meals when they were hungry, if you asked him why he voted for Nixon he'd go into details on his reasoning.
My Mom, God love her, she was a Democrat most of her life, she switched to the Republican party about 8 years ago, she only switched because she's a Religious woman and felt she was constantly being demeaned by her own party, but she still has a lot of Democrat ways about her, feels entitled at times, and she wouldn't even think to tip 20% when going out to eat, and when you asked her why she voted for JFK she said "he was so cute".
Neither of my Parents were/are bigots, if anything their friend choices tended to be Hispanics.
My Dad worked hard and did what he could for us and people around him suffering, my Mother kind of had the attitude "that's sad" but that was it, 1 took action 1 didn't. This is not to disparage my Mother, I love her very much, but there are differences when it comes to the Republican and Democrat mentality. I was born a Republican, and I'm very proud of that, never ever was able to feel or live the Democrat side.
