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Elite

First off, if you haven't already, I want you to read this post by Glenn Greenwald, one of the best living journalists on the planet, who offers a typically intelligent take on Brexit:

https://theintercept.com/2016/06/25/brexit-is-only-the-latest-proof-of-the-insularity-and-failure-of-western-establishment-institutions/

There have been lots of hot takes -- so, so many hot takes -- on the pros and cons of Britain leaving the European Union, with the cons resonating the loudest in most media channels. Also, there have been attempts by numerous Americans to parallel the Brexit voter with the Trump voter w/r/t lower than average intelligence, higher than average xenophobia, and a general Luddite backwater mien. Being a self-centered cuss, my immediate reaction was to look at my retirement accounts, survey the damage, and try not to sigh too loudly.

Of course, in the context of Greenwald's trenchant analysis as to the nature of elite status, that last comment of mine has painted me as part of the primary problem in the 21st Century -- the fact that I am an elite, whether or not I believe myself to be. Even though the only time I feel elite is when I'm grabbing groceries from the top shelves for short humans, the demographics and numbers don't lie -- I'm a white male who owns my home and my car with no credit card debt, a white male who has solid health insurance and a retirement policy in the low six figures, a white male with two Master's degrees and over 5000 CD's. At this moment, the two most immediate wants in my life are Hostess Key Lime Slime Twinkies and the second season of Rick & Morty on Blu-ray.

So as much as I deny it, I am an elite. So does that guarantee that I am part of the problem? If I understand myself as an elite with empathy, is that any better? And what can I do to act with empathy and/or assuage my guilt over my elite status? I don't have any answers to these questions, and I just hope that these questions are not answered for me at some point, be it the ballot box or something more immediate and intense. Maybe if I was better at being an elite, I'd not worry so much.


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