Red States and Blue States

Writing last week's blog got me thinking more about the Fall of 1960. It was a presidential election year and the first time in my eleven years of life that I had ever thought of Democrats or Republicans. I had no idea which I was so I asked my Dad. "We're Democrats" came the reply. And that was that.

Idaho at that time, and maybe even now for that matter, was decidedly Republican. Conservative somewhere to the right of Attila the Hun. I had no way of knowing that then. All I knew was that our guy was young, vital, vibrant, and a great speech maker in vast contrast to the only president I had known about who was an old bald geezer. I watched the debate. Their guy looked like a criminal in bad need of a shave. I'd seen better looking pictures on the post office wall.

Being from Atomic City hadn't exactly endeared me to my classmates and now I was the class Democrat. That's right I was it. The rest of the class were lined up like lemmings buying Cliff Notes. Chuck Knight, my fellow Atomic Cityean, may have been one too but he was in Mrs. Stevenson's class. I was all alone in my beliefs. I didn't have a clue as to what those beliefs were but evidently they were diametrically opposed to all that was good and holy.

C. Brent Merrill (not A. Brent Merrill his cousin, in Mrs. Steveson's class to avoid confusion) summed it up when he said Democraps had crap in their hair. I told him Repooplicans had poop in theirs.

My guy won...it was magnificent.