The book I am reading now is about Abraham Lincoln and it is a compilation of snippets from various Lincoln biographies and interviews with Lincoln biographers. Needless to say it is a bit repetitive, but very interesting. I didn’t mean to start with something so negative but the repetition was very noticeable early on and continues throughout the book.
There were many things about Lincoln I did not know before starting this book, which does not really say much. I discovered that Lincoln might have had his own form of “daddy issues” – to the point where he even refused to come to his father’s dying bedside. Not to mention the fact that the first woman he seemed to be truly in love with died very tragically (Ann Rutledge). Once those two situations are fully understood it is not shocking to hear that he was manic depressive to the point where his family and friends were “afraid to leave sharp objects around” (p. 14). The whole idea of such vulnerability really makes Lincoln very accessible to the average person. He experienced devastating heartbreak (some say he never truly recovered) and had problems with his parents, just like we do today. Just like us!
One of the things I found most interesting so far about the Lincoln Presidency was how willing his opponents were to serve him following his election. Stephen Douglas ran directly opposite him as the Democratic Party candidate and upon Lincoln’s election came to Lincoln and said, “This is not a time for partisanship. I’m with you.” He appointed the runner-up from the Republican Party as his Secretary of State (ringing any bells?? Hilary Clinton? Appointed Secretary of State under Obama after losing to him in the primaries?) and appointed another guy who wanted to be president as his Secretary of Treasury. It seemed like the spirit was to involve everyone, regardless of which party they were representing. The book also mentioned the crowds that would attend any political debates or speeches were very substantial. One of the authors likened politics in the period to sporting events today since they would sit through up to four hours of debates or speeches. Could you imagine sitting there for FOUR hours while politicians hundreds of yards away from you are debating or delivering a speech when microphones and speakers (and jumbotrons) and any other kinds of speech enhancing technology haven’t been invented yet?
One of the things that I found the most interesting and that really stood out as a, Wow, as a society we have really deteriorated, moment was the way visitors to the White House were treated when Lincoln was president. People would travel from all over the country to come see the president and voice their concerns to him and they were welcomed into the White House with open arms. There were specific timeslots reserved for meetings like these, as much as five hours a day, twice a week. Lincoln called these “public opinion baths.” Lincoln very much enjoyed this time and actually said it was “invigorating” for him and was what the president “owed the people who had elected him.” That kind of dedication from a president is truly awe-inspiring. Even if we had such a devoted leader today, “unscreened, no security check” pop-ins of course would NEVER fly. It reminds me of when my grandmother was a young lady and she would take her son (my uncle) to the grocery store in a baby carriage and leave the baby carriage outside the market alongside all of the other baby carriages with sleeping babies inside. We have turned into a society where elected officials cannot even drive down West 57th Street without their twelve SUV/Escalade caravan (AHEM, Bloomberg) protecting them from the people they are supposed to be protecting. I feel like we have all noticed even in our lifetimes the increase in security for such basic things (like random buildings in NYC) but reading about people just walking into the Cabinet Room really just drives the point home. Can you imagine walking into the White House today to speak with Barack Obama? I think the person at the front gate would laugh at you. We have come a long way.
PS – As an update to a previous post, I did eventually get connected with some fantastic podcasts for Astrology courses at Ohio State University and they are my new obsession on the train to work. I have yet to revisit that chapter in Hawking’s book but I will soon. Hawking also released a book this week that I am going to add to my list for this blog (the list is getting quite long at this point).
No comments:
Post a Comment