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Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday. My name is Barb Rankin, I was 3 credit hours short of obtaining a second college degree in History and Political Science during my undergraduate years, and I believe that if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living. In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday I share what I’ve learned about the importance of being informed before making a decision or casting a ballot.
Fun Fact:
- Both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions in 1972 were held in Miami Beach, Florida, which became both the third and the last city to host both conventions in the same city in the same year.
- The Republican National Convention was originally going to be held in San Diego, however a deal couldn’t be reached and a scandal surrounding one of the investors in the San Diego Sports Arena brought the convention to Miami Beach instead.
- During the Republican National Convention the police had to subdue protesters with pepper gas, and TV journalist Andrea Mitchell, covering her first convention, got sprayed in the eyes.
- The Democratic Party fielded 15 declared candidates for the presidency, one of whom was Shirley Chisholm, a New York Congressman, and the first major-party black candidate for President of the United States, and the first woman to run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
- The Democratic Party nominated Senator George McGovern of South Dakota as their presidential candidate and Senator Thomas Eagleton as for vice-president. Eagleton would be replaced by Sargent Shriver shortly thereafter when it came to light that Eagleton had undergone mental health treatment.
- Richard Nixon was the President and incumbent, representing the Republican Party. Spiro T. Agnew remained on the ticket as the incumbent Vice President. Agnew would resign less than one year after re-election as he was being investigated for, among other things, accepting bribes and would plead guilty to one count of failure to report income. He would be replaced as Vice President by Gerald Ford.
- In the November election, Nixon won in a landslide, with 61% of the popular vote, carrying 49 states. McGovern lost his home state of South Dakota, winning only Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. Less than 2 years later, on August 9, 1974, Nixon would resign from the presidency rather than face likely impeachment charges for his role in the Watergate scandal and other allegations.
What I Learned Yesterday:
When I was in the 6th grade I, along with several of my classmates, were given the privilege of assisting the librarians in the elementary school library. We checked books out to students and put the books away when they were returned.
I always seemed to be assigned to the history section, and at some point I began reading biographies of famous people throughout history. I realized years later that many of these were simply historical fiction, geared to the young reader, but I found their lives and stories to be fascinating. I would often eagerly wait for a book that I wanted to read to be returned to the library and when it was, I’d check it out to myself.
My love of history continued until the 8th grade, when a less than inspiring history teacher turned me off to the subject. Fortunately, my 9th grade civics teacher was new to teaching, enthusiastic, and kindled my interest in political science and government.
When I began attending a new, smaller school in the 10th grade, my new homeroom teacher was also my history teacher, and he remained both through my senior year. I couldn’t wait to read my history assignments and to learn from him. History and political science became alive as he had us scouring the newspapers for current events. As we grew from teenagers to adults, he wanted us to be good citizens – be informed citizens – when we finally took our places at the poll to vote.
So when we left for summer vacation in 1972, he gave us an assignment. We were to prepare a report, in an old fashioned Duo Tang folder, about the Democratic and Republican National Conventions that were both to be held in Miami. We were to gather newspaper articles on the key issues and positions of each candidate, then summarize and compare them. This would cover both foreign and domestic policy, and the respective party platforms. Although the majority of the class would not be able to vote (I was 16 going on 17 at the time), this would be his only chance to teach us an important lesson on making an informed choice in a presidential election prior to our graduation.
Elections are not the only time when we need to do our homework and make an informed choice. We do this every day at work and at home. We do it when we make important decisions, whether it is buying a home, deciding which college to attend, accepting a new job, moving across the country.
I’m currently completing renovations of the bathrooms in my home. While it might have been easy to simply walk into the local home improvement store and purchase new toilets, I needed to do some homework. I checked Consumer Reports for ratings and performance, wanting to ensure I purchased a reliable and water-saving product. I read reviews by people who had purchased the products to see whether they had been satisfied or not. I considered the cost of my purchase against my renovation budget and the timely availability of my chosen product so that we could remain on schedule. I spoke with my plumber to get his expert knowledge. Ultimately I made my decision and my purchase. But I needed to make an informed decision.
And no – I can guess what you might be thinking, but I am not comparing politics to bathroom humor.
When I returned to high school in the fall, my report was ready. The cover had a picture from one of the conventions, with red, white and blue balloons, ribbons and confetti dropping from the ceiling.
Key issues of the period, ending the Vietnam War, newly established relations with China, the plight of the poor, women’s rights, were documented in the pages. We discussed each issue we had researched in class. We did not disparage the candidates and their personal struggles, particularly the revelations about Thomas Eagleton. Our teacher taught us to stick to the facts and that personal attacks were cruel, didn’t accomplish anything, and weren’t necessary as part of the election process.
And although we couldn’t vote, our teacher had a ballot box and we voted. He wanted us to be ready – to be informed – to be prepared.
Here’s what I learned.
Political bickering seems to be at an all time high these days. Candidates take cheap shots at their rivals and worse, at the families of those rivals. Social media reports every nasty, rotten word that is said by anyone. Rhetoric seems to have taken the place of actually talking about key issues in an adult manner.
In the midst of this, it can be difficult to sift through the messy news reports and find real information. It may take extra research, extra time. It may require examining past practices of the candidates to see what they did in real life situations.
I’ve learned that voting is a privilege and a responsibility.
I will be informed – on big and little decisions.
I want to stick to the issues.
I will make an effort to stay away from the mudslinging.
I will treat differing opinions with respect, just as I expect my opinions to be respected.
And in November, I will vote. Thanks to a great teacher.
I’m Barb Rankin and this has been stuff I learned yesterday.
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