I have a list of my favorite authors, which lists six. They are people who have had an influence on me as a writer. I also have a second list titled 'On My Radar'. Henry David Thoreau and Theodore Roethke are on this list.
I have created a third list titled Must Take A Second Look'. Two people who make this list are Ronald Reagan and Daniel Patrick Moynihan. Usually, I would say such a list is created because either I have misread the person or need to know more about how a person ticks. This list could mean putting preconceived notions about the person and having an open mind. Not easy, but needs to be done.
With Reagan I always wondered why he appealed to a lot of Americans. I didn't vote for him yet people seems to feel at ease with him as a leader. In regards to Senator Moynihan, he was vilified in the black community for a statement he made in a 1965 speech about 'benign neglect'. It was about father abdicating their responsibilities as fathers and heads of the family. The welfare people was telling poor women that they could receive more money from the government as long as a man wasn't around. Senator Moynihan that this would become a major problem, and it has.
I can't say that it will change my view of Mr. Reagan and Senator Moynihan but at least I'll have a idea of what they were about and why they did the things they did.
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