We’re all Rich Here

I was out with my boyfriend, Ben, his mom, Deb, and step dad, Jim, for dinner the other night. Jim was late. It was pleasant until he got there, but then, like always, the conversation turned to politics. He is about as conservative as conservative gets without being religious, and Ben’s mom is not far behind. Whenever Jim talks about politics it fires Ben up and makes me concerned as to whether or not I should marry a person that says, “Whoever voted for those bills does not deserve to have a job.”

They don’t? Then watch me get unemployed, mister. And you didn’t even vote in that election. You’re fired too.

I’m not going to talk about the specific bills and what they mean. They’re a damned if you do, damned if you don’t sort of thing.

I’m concerned about the lack of compassion. My conservative would-be-family say things like, “I was a democrat until I saw how much the government was taking out of my paycheck.”

So what, guys? I think of government like a service that you’re buying: you’re buying an education for your children, you’re buying roads to drive on, you’re buying mail delivery, you’re buying firefighters to stop your house from burning down, and you’re paying the cops to catch the bad guys. It’s not perfect, there is internal loss like at any company, but we must have it. Those people have wages that need to be paid.

I’m rich. I have over twenty grand in student loans, and make $9 an hour plus tips, drive a car with a chunk missing from the bumper, and shop at discount stores. Deb and Jim drive cars that have voice commands and own three houses between them. And they don’t want any more money taken out of their check. I’m sorry, but we’re all rich here, living in house with fewer than three spiders at a time, and no dirt floors, and clean drinking water.

Buck up.