Welcome to Perry's World.....

This morning in the Washington Post: At Rick Perry's Texas hunting Spot, Camp's Racially Charged Name Lingered

The Washington Post article begins, "In the early years of his political career, Rick Perry began hosting fellow lawmakers, friends and supporters at his family’s secluded West Texas hunting camp, a place known by the name painted in block letters across a large, flat rock standing upright at its gated entrance. “Niggerhead,” it read."

The 5 (online) page article proceeds to interview Perry and several people familiar with the camp to try to determine how long this offensive label has been on property. I was shocked at how "Several spoke matter-of-factly about the hunting camp and its name and wondered why it held any outside interest." Really!? No clue why this would shock many, not one clue? My question is how does a candidate who comes from a place with such a deep level of disconnectedness even get this far? To give you some background, "the 2010 Census shows 11 black residents in this county....ELEVEN! Also, the article adds that, "Haskell County began observing Martin Luther King Jr. Day two years ago". Let me repeat, TWO years ago. Again I ask? How does someone who lives in a bubble get this far in this presidential election politics? It's astounding to me. Aren't there better candidates out there? Must our presidents always be wealthy?

I decided to treat you all and list the absurd and blatant, nonchalant comments quoted in this article from people in "Rick's world":

* Don Ballard, the superintendent of the Paint Creek school district. “Certainly were no picketing signs. Blacks were perfectly satisfied with what was happening.”

* “It’s just a name,” said Haskell County Judge David Davis, sitting in his courtroom and looking at a window. “Like those are vertical blinds. It’s just what it was called. There was no significance other than as a hunting deal.”

* “We kind of laughed about it,” recalled this person, who said he would probably vote for Perry if he wins the Republican nomination.

* Longtime hunters, cowboys and ranchers said this particular place was known by that name as long as they could remember, and still is.

* Ray Perry once borrowed Reed’s hunting lodge said, "it’s basically a figure of speech as far as most people are concerned. No one thought anything about it.”

Reading this article makes me realize how deeply disappointed I am at the level of conformity and demobilization of the masses in this country. I was recently at a meeting and a participant I highly admire asked, "How come we're always the chumps? The other guys always come out with the big guns, let's stop being chumps!". True. In the grassroots world we often get caught up with details, getting our facts straight, not coming across too extreme. But the people who are on top, in whatever capacity this may be, seem to have in common this lack of general sanity and hold perspectives that are disconnected from facts and how the majority thinks. I propose that as a country, we actually need to reevaluate what we value in our leaders. How does a guy who is obviously so disconnected even get to be in a PRESIDENTIAL debate? I will take a wild guess and say that as a society we admire wealth way too much and this helps clouds all our judgements. Perry so obviously not resemble most of us, and perhaps that is what his supporters like in him; the glitz. He represents the things wealth can buy. He must be great for he's filthy rich.