I Am An Elitist

"We've traveled the world, we've known Kings, we've known Princes, discoursed with scholars, and reasoned with fools." ~ Unknown (Scottish folk song)

It has recently been suggested to me that I keep a dictionary handy, presumably so I can use it to look up the word "compunction". The author of that comment apparently assumes, for whatever reason, that I am not as erudite as he. Perhaps it's because I prefer to keep my writing style simple enough so that readers like he cannot misunderstand the intent of my elucidation. I don't content myself to merely imply that I think the aforementioned commenter is a hypocritical jerk.

I prefer to make it quite clear that I think he is a hypocritical jerk.

Furthermore, he goes on to state, curiously, and at great length, that he doesn't really care what I think, to which another commenter pointed out that he certainly goes to no small amount of effort to impress someone he doesn't really care about impressing.

I have to admit I found that exchange amusing.

Perhaps some background behind the exchange of ad hominen attacks on each other is warranted here. The commenter, who's name (his initials are GK-S) shall not be revealed in this entry, remarked that he was celebrating the fact that the late Senator Jesse Helms was now, as he put it, "worm food". He didn't explain why he thinks Mr. Helms was such a deplorable person that he would deserve such disrespect, but I feel it only fair to point out the fact that Jesse Helms is not in any way "worm food", now or ever. Jesse Helms is in spirit form, wherever he now resides. The only thing remaining of Senator Helms that is "worm food" is the vehicle which carried his eternal soul around on this earth. And that vehicle was created by Helm's Creator to be disposable.

As is mine. As is Mr. GK-S's.

Let me state for the record that no dictionary was required. I am quite familiar with the word "compunction" but I never use it myself, primarily because I find the word sounds like it should have an entirely different meaning. Don't ask me to explain why. It just sounds to me, on intonation, rather coarse and vulgar. There is no sound reason why I feel that way. I just don't feel a compunction to use the word.

Heh Heh.

Be that as it may, I will admit that this naked intent to offend me had its desired effect, because I was duly insulted.

I'm funny that way. I get insulted over the most trivial of slights while casually brushing aside much stronger verbal assaults. If I am called ugly, I laugh. If I am called simple, I shrug. Call me an elitist if you will and I will not disagree, although I myself will use that word often to describe and denigrate those who I consider to be lemming mentality bleeding heart liberal sob sisters.

Of course, when I use the word "elitist" to describe a Liberal, I use it with a negative connotation. When I apply it to myself, it carries with it a very positive connotation.

The word "elitist" springs to mind almost every time I hear a snippet from a speech by B. Hussein Obama, yet I don't mind the appellation when it's applied to me, because, quite frankly, I consider myself an elitist, but in a good way.

I am not a "redneck", nor have I ever been. I don't care if someone calls me a redneck, but the appellation is not applicable in any way to me or my character.

I wouldn't want anyone to infer that I have anything against rednecks, because I don't. I just don't consider myself thus.

I could be a redneck easily enough, though.

God knows I wasn't born with the proverbial silver spoon in my mouth. Quite the contrary, I was born the sixth child in a family that struggled week to week, month to month, just to put enough food on the table to keep us all properly nourished. Often, we as a family would have either chicken or pot roast for Sunday dinner, and then subsist on the leftovers as long as they lasted, then finish the week eating navy beans and cornbread. Then, the cycle would begin again the next week. And so on.

We didn't rub shoulders with the upper crust, and we didn't attempt to ingratiate ourselves into their company. We were erusticated but proud. It is that pride, I think, that compels me to consider myself elite. I have tried to raise my own children with that attitude. I have often repeated to them, "We may be poor white trash, but we don't have to act like it".

You will excuse the faux pas of ending the previous sentence with a preposition, one of my pet peeves. It is what I say, and it makes the point.

I wasn't always an elitist. I suffered from class envy myself until I was well into my twenties, or maybe even into my thirties. I don't recall when the realization came to me that the wealthy were not to be scorned but appreciated for their ability to amass large amounts of money. It is no small task. I suppose it would be fair to say I still envy the rich, but it is with admiration rather than scorn now. If they didn't attain their wealth by hard work and intelligent decisions, they most certainly maintain their riches thusly.

I should probably add here, that I still am not a wealthy man, by any one's estimation. I still struggle week to week, sometimes barely making it to the next paycheck. I am not whining, just stating a fact. I am always working hard to improve my situation. Sometimes I make wrong choices, which result in getting myself into dire straits, but I don't ask for sympathy or help from anyone. I am responsible for myself. I either succeed or fail on my own. I guess it's part of my elitist pride. I refuse to accept pity or assistance from anyone.

I certainly have little right to consider myself elite. I don't possess a degree from any institution of higher learning, unless high school is considered higher learning. I did complete 26 hours of University study, but because of a typical youthful lack of money and ambition, I never finished. Unlike three of my five brothers and sisters, I didn't earn a full academic scholarship.

Nevertheless, I am an elitist. This is not to say I am arrogant, because I'm usually not, although I sometimes catch myself being condescending to others. (In much the same way as GK-S, but not as frequently) Most notably, as it happens, to rednecks. Jeff Foxworthy defines a redneck as someone "with a glorious lack of sophistication". I am loathe to admit it, but I consider myself too sophisticated to be a redneck, at least in the way Foxworthy defines them.

Yes, I'm rambling. It has been a few days since the aforementioned nasty argument occurred. It took this long for the offense to really start eating at me, so much so that I found myself lying awake in bed tonight, mulling over possible retorts.

But, I am better than that.

I lowered myself to GK-S's level by responding in the way that I did, and I am not remorseful for that, because in my opinion, he deserved that and more for his irreverent, smarmy, un-Christian remarks. What I am ashamed of is that I allowed myself to be drawn into a sophomoric, pointless sort of argument, which is better left to the non-thinking Liberals in the blogosphere.

I am above that.

Incidentally, I mentioned that I don't know why he held the opinion that Senator Helms was such a deplorable person, and unfortunately and wrongly, I resorted to the old Liberal tactic of pointing to an example of a Democrat Legislator who's prejudices are arguably as bad or worse than those attributed to Helms. Robert Byrd, to be exact.

What I should have done, was do some research into the life and career of Mr. Helms, and countered with that, instead.

Not knowing the exact reasoning behind the offending commenters disrespectful comments has me at a disadvantage to be sure, but I would assume he was referring to the supposed racism that Liberals and Democrats (the two are not mutually inclusive) of which Mr Helms has often been accused.

The truth can be easily ascertained by a simple googling of Jesse Helm's name. It would seem that Helms has been pretty much a lifetime victim of slander. He wasn't a racist by any stretch of the imagination, in fact, he was quite the opposite.

I got this information from Ann Coulter's online column, which I realize has no credibility in Liberal circles. But before any Liberals raise their expected objection to my using Ann Coulter as a resource, let me point out that in the same article she praised Ted Kennedy for maintaining a good relationship with his staffers, so it must be factual. Here is what Ann says about Jesse Helms:

Helms was viciously and falsely portrayed as a racist -- including in the totally objective New York Times obituary last week. In January 1963, a decade before Helms would run for office, he editorialized about Harvey Gantt, the first black student to be admitted to Clemson University in South Carolina.

Helms praised Gantt to the skies, saying he had "stoutly resisted the pose of a conquering hero" and had "turned away from the liberal press and television networks which would glorify him." Gantt, Helms said, just wanted to be an architect and "Clemson is the only college in South Carolina that can teach him how to be one."

Helms was for integration; he was simply against "movements." He would later hire James Meredith, who was the first black to attend the University of Mississippi -- with the assistance of federal troops. By 1989, Meredith's views had come around to those of Helms, not the other way around.

After years of reading and studying and attending law school at Columbia University, Meredith concluded that blacks had been better off when they worked for themselves and not for white liberals.

Now, if Mr GK-S has some reason to dislike Jesse Helms other than the false allegations of racism leveled at him by Liberal Democrats, perhaps he would care to educate us poor, dumb, uneducated bloggers.