The Bro Culture

"Off the rails" is the way my friend, and now host/landlord, described the Democratic Party just now as we worried over the results of the election. 

Somehow Trump's victory was not a surprise for anyone who was really watching. It was a shame, and not the fault of Harris at all, but rather of the policies of this party I--and so many of us Catholic liberals (Pope Francis voters) ascribe to.

We will share lunch this noon, and then will have ample time to flesh out our various sentiments. 

Ben and Kathy are both active in the Denver Catholic community--leaders, in fact, on a grassroots level, since Vatican II breathed such life into the Church. They lead the choir at Annunciation Parish currently, and both teach classes at Most Precious Blood. Kathy writes a weekly column on the liturgical readings that is widely read throughout the archdiocese, and Ben plays piano for various parishes.

Meanwhile I--for the present a guest in their downstairs apartment--can benefit from this chance to visit with them when our busy schedules allow for it.

But back to my thoughts on the election. Yesterday various soul searching reports pointed out the Demo crats' failure to bring the "Bro culture" on board. The dudes found in Trump someone who saw them and resonated. A Guardian article  this morning went into more detail on the subject based on the studies of Richard Reeves, president of the Institute for Boys and Men.

Reeves points out that Democrat-inspired policies have continually relegated young men to a second-class status by over-emphasizing policies favorable to women (at the expense of men.) Abortion, for example, while supported by many men, tends to stress women's freedom over their own bodies, and often echoes stories of rape, incest and abuse as causes. Feminists have long stressed patriarchy as a cause of women's struggle for equality; and yet, the language of patriarchy comes across as anti-men more than it does pro-woman. 

This may be why even young women went in larger-than-expected numbers for Trump. The "new" feminism, I understand, is less anti-men, less puritanical, than the version I came of age with. These young women may see cooperation with men more advantageous than competition.

Isn't that the middle ground in this situation? Cooperation brings us together; competition drives us apart. (Yeah, sports...but you can't tell me Broncos fans feel particularly close to supporters of the Kansas City Chiefs.)

So, we search our souls. There's more to search out than simply this one issue, but on this one maybe a younger generation of Democrats can correct the course and bring balance where we have wandered off-course.

#FrancesRossi