Time for a Generational Shift in Politics
Thoughts on a Political Rally in Jersey
Last night I went to a political rally for a young representative from South Jersey, Andy Kim. He’s in a three-way race in the Democratic Primary for Senate, along with Senator Gold Bar, Robert Menendez, and the Governor’s wife, Tammy Murphy. In an old church, he spoke to a packed audience about his Korean background, opposition to Trump, and outsider status.
Despite the fact that the Democratic Jersey machine is backing Murphy’s wife, Kim is up by 12 points. Scanning the crowd, I knew many faces in the room and noted the absentees -- almost all the elected Democratic officials and other power players in town. A local political activist told me that she was told who to vote for — instructions which she was defiantly ignoring.
The room was wildly supportive, despite a Pro-Palestinian heckler in the back and Kim’s policy-free speech. The audience was excited to support a young guy, who wasn’t hand chosen for them by the machine. People want a choice, especially as we face the most depressing presidential election in recent history — Old Guy v. Old Guy.
Jonah, my 24-year old perpetual college student, was the guy that turned us onto to Kim. Jonah learn about him on the New Jersey Reddit forum last fall, and shared information with us.
As recently as January, people believed that Murphy was going to win. In a great profile of Murphy in New York Magazine, the author writes that Nepo politics were going to win in our state. “This is insider politics at its most brazen. Murphy will probably be New Jersey’s next senator because she is married to its current governor.” But the tide shifted in just one month, with a huge advantage towards Kim.
This is the wrong time for Nepo Politics. People want change. The forces that are keeping Biden scaffolded upright on a podium are faltering. Democrats know that they need real candidates — smart, talented folks without vast personal wealth, who speak without hypocrisy. It’s their only shot against Trump and the MAGA Machine.
The rich and the poor have vastly different experiences in our state, and the Murphys definitely fall in the rich bucket. The Murphys sent their own kids to an exclusive private school that remained open during COVID, while the rest of the state’s kids had to squint at Chromebooks in their beds for a year and a half. She was a Republican just a few years ago, but none of that matters when the gears of machine politics are at work.
Is Andy Kim “the real thing” — a grassroots, smart, dedicated, honest guy? I’m not sure. His speech last night focused on his relative youth, devotion to public service, his ethnicity, his origin story. He made a point of saying that he attended a public schools and so did his kids. He handled the heckler well. I would have liked to hear more about his positions on key topics.
Kim was greeted with waves of applause and iPhone selfies. His greatest supporters were those who were voting against the Democratic machine, that is seen as corrupt and in lockstep with organized interests. And Steve and I clapped wildly with them all. Change is contagious.
LINKS
In college admission news, essays are out (ChatGPT) and SAT scores are back (best predictor of college success).
Sometime the hunger for clicks is stronger than basic maternal instincts. Another way that modernity has undermined nature.
Folks who championed the Science of Reading are now looking at math methods. At the 74, Holly Korbey writes, “nearly 50% of schools employ trained reading specialists, while only 23% have math specialists.” And another great article at Edutopia.
Fun link of the day: Royal Family Gossip
We’ve all been trading stomach bugs and head colds back and forth for three weeks, so not much writing has happened. A few things happened:
On the blog, I gave an update on life. On the disability newsletter, I wrote about one of my fears for my autism son.
We saw the final performance of “How To Dance in Ohio,” a Broadway play about autistic young adults and acted by autistic young adults. I hope that it returns.
Beyonce + Pop Country Music = GDP of Ecuador (Texas Hold ‘Em is on heavy repeat on my running playlist.)
Family pictures: The Broadway play, Me and the boys in NYC, some of Ian’s friends at a bowling party.
Updates on the new venture: The Autism College Connection. I turned my disability newsletter into a webinar! Last week, I told a Zoom room full of parents that when Ian finished high school three years ago, he wasn’t ready for life. So, I kept him in public schools and researched the hell out of all the options. Then I told them about it for an hour. It went great. I’m going to do it again in March. (Sign up for the business newsletter, too!)
Shopping: Who needs a new outfit? You need a new outfit. The new mandatory items are: a short black sweater with gold buttons, a belt, shiny loafers, wide leg jeans, a big loose blazer, some serious hardware on your ears.
Back in the old days, I drank two glasses of wine every night. It was my reward for getting through a long day of writing articles, handling the kids, and then making dinner. I stopped first just to lose weight. Then, I found I couldn’t handle it anymore. I get drunk too easily. I gave up red wine for Lent, though it’s not much of a sacrifice. I’m finding that I don’t miss it at all. Besides, all that research about the health benefits of red wine turned out to be bogus anyway. Boo.
Two great articles on homelessness and housing costs in the New York Times. Next newsletter will probably be on these topics.
Watching: Fargo, Blue Zones
Picture: Jimmy’s Corner. A dive bar on 44th St. Steve and I drank here in grad school. Still standing.
Love this: “The forces that are keeping Biden scaffolded upright on a podium are faltering.” 😆