Born on second base
I continue to be greatly distressed by many of my compatriots and friends who bask in the most powerful “entitlement,” that of being born white and privileged, who now allow political charlatans to exploit their basest instincts by hissing that those not born white and privileged are exploiting them through government entitlements. The latest travesty is the Republican “war on the poor” slashing of food stamps that mostly provide meager sustenance for children, the elderly, the handicapped, and for 20,000 war vets down on their luck. Yes, the program has grown over the past four years but that is due to the Great Recession foisted on us all by a Wall Street cabal of privileged white men who skipped off with millions in bonuses while decimating the economy that put many into desperate, unemployed, straits they had no part in creating. If poetic justice and reincarnation are real, I know a huge swath of privileged white folks (who were born on second base and smugly think they hit a double), Republican Congressmen, and right-wing radio zealots, who are coming back as crippled, one-eyed, beggars in the black hole of Calcutta.
Jay Lacklen
Columbus
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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