Problems of The United States Democracy

by Ralph E Kenyon Jr - Why me?

I went to school in Chester, Massachusetts. We had a traditional eight room, two floor, grammar school, with the executive offices on a small third floor. When I started school it housed grades 1-8. The high school was across U.S. Route 20.  Sometime before it was time to switch to high school, the eighth grade was moved across the street to the high school building in order to make room for a special class - kids with special needs - cerebral palsy,  down syndrome, what was later to be called learning disabilities, etc.  That class was the envy of all the rest of us, because they went on special field trips and got other, what we thought were, special activities and benefits. 

As a matter of fact, the whole school system in Chester was special.  We had long term professional teachers that really knew their stuff and were highly dedicated.  The academics were superior as evidenced by the fact that our students who transferred elsewhere often got to advance a class while students transferring in from other schools often had to drop back a class.  At least that's the talk I remember, especially from high school. In high school I had both English and (now called) "stem" classes from the same teachers that had taught my dad. Both were fantastic teachers.  Both served me extremely well when I got to college. (In college I won the top mathematics prize all four years.) One of our courses in high school was "Problems of Democracy". Half a century later I began to become seriously interested in the current "Problems of Democracy". For the first time in my life, I actively contributed money for Elizabeth Warren's campaign opposite Republican Scott Brown's re-election bid.

While I was in the Navy, my potential political activity was inhibited by the Hatch Act, which prohibits all government personal from publicly endorsing, one way or the other, any political party or candidates in any way related to our Government position. I did contact my congress person's office occasionally, but never mentioned my military affiliation.  My first real effort to make a difference was my letter to Congress in 1975.  You'll notice there is no mention of my service. I advanced that idea again in 2013, now that it's clear that the congress has gone in the opposite direction.