My recent visit to New York City was both an enjoyable and enlightening experience. NYC has always been a great city to visit. It has life and culture and vitality. The sidewalks don’t roll up at 8:30 – 9:00 o’clock and it’s like the lights are always on. There are restaurants and theaters and people on the street, walking and talking. There are those who dislike large cities but my various visits have always been most enjoyable. If I had to drive in the traffic daily it would be unbearable and the noise can be both deafening and at the same time exhilarating. Although I currently reside in a small city, the urban feel of a New York is invigorating. Most of my adult life has involved working in the field of Urban Affairs. The hustle and bustle of urban living does not intimidate me but I understand that many people do not find it so exciting and that’s OK.
At the present time I am reading a book on the white working class. The reason for my reading it to try to better understand why a portion of this group is supporting Donald Trump. Here we have a very wealthy New Yorker with an arrogance and attitude. Why would those of us from working class families think that this guy can understand our concerns and then help us? The book is very informative but I still have difficulty comprehending the connection. Perhaps just as important I honestly can’t believe Donald Trump really believes what comes out of his mouth. My recent trip to NYC, his hometown, only confuses me more. How could he live in this city and be such a bigot?
Riding the subway in NYC is like a meeting at the United Nations. Seated across from you, standing by you is every ethnicity, race, religion, sex and income level. There is constant exposure to other people almost every day. Restaurants abound in NYC of every nationality and food type possible. The crowds move along the sidewalks, rubbing shoulders, following traffic signs together without disagreements or actual fights on every corner. Just people living together, working together, being together, all so different, in harmony.
Out of this environment comes Donald Trump. I have always believed that when people are close and exposed to each other, it is kind of hard to hate. Mr. Trump goes contrary to that belief and spouts out acrimony and conflict. Perhaps his speech is strictly for political purposes or maybe he never saw the city around him. The former makes him a hypocrite the latter just out of touch or dumb. My president needs to have both truth in policies and a knowledge and understanding of the world and the people in it. My vote is going to a New Yorker, Hillary Clinton.
Phil's Personal Perspectives 