By Mark David Blum, Esq.

In his essay, Kimatian draws a hard line between two schools of thought. He paints a house of straw men built upon the stereotype that all A are B and all C are D. He falsely posits all Democrats and policies of that party are about entitlements. Likewise, Kimatian stereotypes all Republicans and their party policies as do it yourselfers with a no frills. Then in a crushing blow to all things logical, Kimatian hypothesizes that all voters are suckers seeking a free ride.

Making a canyon sized leap in logic, Kimatian again reaches for the stereotype and lashes the NYS Democrats for having, “blocked a vote on preventing state electronic benefits cards being used at ATMs located in strip joints, porn shops and casinos. Apparently, the last thing Silver wants to experience is a disappointed voter's porn backlash and so he goes to great lengths to keep the benefits flowing, even for as blatantly a sordid use of public tax monies as this usage”. Does Kimatian actually believe that these anecdotal rumors and random acts are the norm? He is playing on stereotypes long held since Ronald Reagan invented the Welfare Queen and using those shadows to blindside his readers with shame for their love for their fellow man.

I have a stereotype to share with Kimatian. Try this: The United States is among the most affluent nations on this planet. Our worst live better than eighty percent of the people in the world. I say that given this wealth, there is no reason any of us should ever go hungry, homeless, without an education, without medical care, or without hope. We have the ability to lift all boats and become the better society that our better angels can make possible. Greed may be good but none of us lives alone. We are all part of what our Framers called “The People”. As such, there is a collective responsibility to each other. All entitlements do is assure a basic standard of living for all Americans. That is a duty we owe to one another as part of our social contract. Those who receive our largesse and squander it in strip clubs or casinos; that is their loss. All we can do is show love and compassion for our fellow man. Such an ideology is not a stereotype. It is at the core of Christian teaching, is it not?

Perhaps Kimatian was born with a silver spoon in his mouth or is even a self made Gordon Gekko. Kudos to him and his greed. After all, greed is what he is selling with his snakeoil stereotypes. His basic argument is get yours and don’t share. He complains that those who oppose him or disagree with him are lazy greedy porn loving slimeballs. The imagery he relies upon to make his case for greed is right out of some propaganda textbook. Where this all ends, says Kimatian, is “servitude”. Hold the phone.

Not everybody on public assistance is a greedy lazy bum. Not every democrat is all about handing out cash without remorse. I doubt every Republican will stand by idly watching someone choke to death without using their telephone for a socialized 911 call for help.

The world painted by Kimatian in his essay is false. Perhaps that explains why he sits on the sidelines of politics and does not hold office.

Whatever one thinks of either political party, they are not as Kimatian claims. There is good reason to not subscribe to the ideologies of any major party; libertarians included. The parties are corrupt. Gone are the days of big ideas, huge leaps in achievement, reaching for the stars. I blame both democrats and republicans. I do not blame them for their stereotypes. I blame them for who they actually are; self supporting machines whose goal is to hold onto and secure more power and money.

I hope neither party lays claim to Kimatian or lets him lead their charge. His voice is old and worn out. No more stereotypes and false propaganda. If you want to make a case for your party or your candidate, do it on the merits. Otherwise, you become just a caricature – a two dimensional vaccuous stereotype known as a Kimatian.

Why is it easier for Kimatian to be a stereotype? Because then nobody will see how his politics go as goes the emperor -- without clothes -- without substance.

http://www.syracuse.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/03/why_it_is_easier_to_be_a_democrat_stephen_kimatian.html