Julia is distressed by the name of Mr. Obama’s campaign cartoon figure. Mr. O’s “Julia” is faceless, shameless, and spineless. Why did Mr. O’s “Julia” take seven years to graduate from college, even though she had Pell grants and loans to cover the exorbitant cost of tuition? She “chose” to have a child, but apparently she did not “choose” to have a husband. Does she know any of the research about fatherless children? Poor Zach, he didn’t even get to go to Head Start. At 65, Mr. O’s “Julia” is drug dependent. Is this a carry over from the days of her youth? At 67, this “Julia” retires “comfortably” on her Social Security. Where, Julia wonders, does she live? Mexico perhaps, or Haiti?
Julia’s own Dear Husband worked for more than 50 years, paying 15% of his income to Social Security taxes for most of that time, in addition to federal and state income taxes. Julia herself worked part time and temporary jobs while being a full time mother and homemaker. They began to hear in the 1970’s that Social Security Benefits would not be available to them, but were barely able to fund any retirement accounts until the most recent few years. Without a pension, they would not be able to own a house, or to go abroad to find work in China.
Julia notes that both she and her husband graduated from college, husband with advanced degree, without any loans at all. However, their children are saddled with years of debt from their advanced degrees. The cost of schooling has risen out of all proportion to the rest of the economy. Is it because the federal student loan program increased the prices that could be charged?
Julia has had no health insurance since her Dear Husband retired. His employer could not afford to continue the insurance plan, as it had for an earlier generation. Is it because the insurance business has made the cost of medical care higher? Julia does take one regular medication, and has noted, after all the years of paying the “copay” for it, that it is actually cheaper without insurance than it was with the “copay.” When she goes to the doctor for the annual exam, Julia pays the clinic!
How long does Mr. Obama think his “Julia” will live? When she is 90, will she still be “comfortable” on her social security payment? Will she be able to have the medicine she needs at that time? Will she be regarded as no longer important? Will her son support her, or will he have been killed in some far off war? These questions are conveniently left unanswered.
The real Julia regrets that her name, a name with a long and distinguished history, is degraded by this campaign cartoon. But she regrets even more that her own beloved native land is deceived by the idea that people cannot stand up for themselves and be personally responsible. She further regrets that people have so ignored their spiritual lives, that they think so fragile an institution as a human government can provide for their needs throughout their lives. Dear Readers, Wake up! Stand up! Speak up!