Global Security, Privacy, & Risk Management

“The opposite for courage is not cowardice, it is conformity. Even a dead fish can go with the flow.”– Jim Hightower (progressive political activist)

In November 2014 First Lady, Michelle Obama, had the opportunity to speak to a group of young people in Baltimore, Maryland. She followed up her speech with an appearance on TVOne. As the First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama had an opportunity to encourage these young people to achieve their dreams! Here is a person that as a young woman from the South Side of Chicago went to Princeton then Harvard law school!  She was an intern for Barrack Obama and married the man who later became President of the United States!.  This is a woman who should be encouraging our young people to “shoot for the stars!”.   Unfortunately she does not.  Instead of taking her opportunity to encourage those young people to better themselves, seek higher goals, become educated, think, act, activate, create, question authority, question the status quo, argue, debate, change, serve, fight, study, work, and sacrifice as she clearly had to do to get to her status in life, she instead took an opportunity to use her significant influence to deride those young people by telling them to simply ‘CONFORM’.  She said:  “It’s not about the person on the ballot — it’s about you. And for most of the people that we’re talking to, a Democratic ticket is the clear ticket that we should be voting on, regardless of who said what or did this. That shouldn’t even come into the equation.” Really? “..who said what or did this..” should NOT come into the equation?  The most disturbing comment is when she says: “..for most of the people we are talking to…”.   I am certainly curious as to whom she is referring when she says “…most of the people we are talking to…”?  She was a young black woman from an economically depressed area of Chicago.  What is the difference between Michelle Obama and “…most of the people she is talking to…” in this situation?  Maybe they are not blessed with the innate intelligence to allow them to graduate Salutatorian and then go on to Princeton and Harvard? stead of encouraging those young people (mostly Blacks) to “make a change!”…”argue for change!”…”demand a change!” by bettering themselves and by hard work, effort, and questioning authority and the status quo (as all young people have done throughout history)..she tells them to CONFORM.  If she was speaking to the Princeton Black Student Union would she have been so bold as to tell those young people to not think, not question but simply…”…a Democratic ticket is the clear ticket that we should be voting on, regardless of who said what or did this.” Michelle Obama’s comments are distasteful and certainly condescending to propose that: “...most of the people to whom (we) are talking to…” are not sophisticated enough to evaluate the various positions.  That they are not intelligent or educated enough to understand the nuances of the various arguments.  That they are too simple to make up their own minds and should simply be directed that:“….a Democratic ticket is the clear ticket that we should be voting on, regardless of who said what or did this. That shouldn’t even come into the equation.”  Michelle Obama’s comments are offensive and off base.  We should never simply dictate a party for which a person should vote.  We should always take opportunity to encourage our young people to question, debate, and fight for change.  I am personally disgusted but, unfortunately, not surprised.

To whomever Ms. Obama was referring when she said: “…..a Democratic ticket is the clear ticket that we should be voting on, regardless of who said what or did this.”  She is wrong.  Conformity is NEVER the answer.  Seek your truth, ask the questions, argue, fight and determine what YOU think is right.  Rarely, if ever, will you find that a ‘party line’ is the answer.  “Never seek acceptance through conformity rather seek respect through inquiry and discourse.”– Chris Mark; 2016