Haters

We can all agree that the past decade has changed our view of America. Depending on your age, gender, economic or educational status or family background, you may have grown more optimistic or more cynical, but few would argue that any of us have remained unchanged. In this book I attempt to explore some of the driving cultural forces that have affected those changes. To some degree I attempt to illustrate how America must respond if it has any chance of surviving as the worlds most prosperous and free nation. One of the most influential forces around the world is the proliferation of verbal abuse. With the rapid expansion of information exchanges through technology, what we say can be more powerful than ever. You don't have to be a celebrity or politician, or even a journalist, to reach millions of minds with your ideas. Manipulating language has always been dangerous, but now it carries enormous impact, because the millennial and gen-z generations are super sensitive to personal grievance, to passive aggression, to any form of criticism, and their emotional balance is paramount in their life. Hate is perhaps the strongest and most pervasive emotion that can be blamed for cultural unrest. So it is an easy tool of propaganda. Ascribing hatred to a person or a group is virtually indefensible. You can't disprove a negative, intangible and ugly defamation. It is the perfect weapon because it can cause enormous damage that can never effectively be detoured. In this book, through a series of essays, I argue that throwing around slanderous charges that some people are "Haters" is nothing less than cultural arson.

In this book I look back at several decades in the late 20th Century and describe them as adolescent growing pains. After WW II America was on a winning streak, amassing fortunes from innovations in manufacturing, agriculture, medicine and science. We sent men to the Moon, we saved millions of lives with medical inventions, with labor saving machines, and we learned how to get the best out of the worlds largest and most diverse "Melting Pot" of cultures immigrating from every corner of the planet. It hasn't always been pretty, but by the turn of the century, there was no doubt as to which country was the Leader of the Free World. But something happened on the way to Nirvana. Ever since the attack on the World Trade Centers in New York on September 11, 2001, our fortunes have turned around. The evidence keeps piling up that America has lost its edge, or worse, is teetering on the edge of collapse. In 2016, Donald Trump said he would "Make America Great Again" and then 4 years later, challenger Joe Biden claimed he would "Build Back Better" after the COVID Pandemic nearly destroyed the country. Both political slogans illustrate the conflicting cultural impulses of the nation: the Democrats from Jimmy Carter (A Leader For A Change), to Bill Clinton (For People, For Change) have appealed to those who seek change. Republicans from Reagan (Morning In America) to Trump, want to seek greatness. Democrats play on the perceived personal unfairness of their opponents (racism, unfair taxation, discrimination, hatred) while Republicans appeal to the aspirations of the voters to achieve more success (lower taxes and unemployment, lower interest rates, cheaper energy). Political slogans have changed little in 75 years, but the public mood has. Instead of working to improve economic opportunities and the quality of life for all Americans exclusive of their race, gender or background, to reduce our national debt, refurbish our roads and bridges, and to make home ownership more accessible for young folks, our political parties are focusing on placating single issue groups, paying off student loans, and rectifying inequities caused by the racist Founding Fathers back in 1776. Instead of unifying our people, they are dividing us into waring factions. I think Americans hate being treated like pawns on a chess board. The efforts to end racism as we know it have utterly failed and the levels of social and racial discomfort are at their highest since the Civil War. This book doesn't offer all the answers, but if I ask the right questions, maybe it will provoke readers to demand them of our leaders.

My goal is to inform and provoke. To stir up my fellow Americans' latent sense of responsibility to provide a secure and exciting future for our offspring and to nurture liberty for all. As a lifelong Californian, during my formative years, I spent two decades in ski, surf and golf product advertising and sales. Later I spent three decades in the new home building industry. A diverse career by any measure but one that reflects the nature of our country and particularly the character of California: a state that was built by a strong pioneering spirit and now projects a sense of freedom by promoting outdoor activism and a strong sense of social responsibility. Like my background, my writing is eclectic. I work like a musician. My books are my albums and my "songs" reflect the cultural challenges of our times. I am heavily influenced by my youthful exposure to the 60's Civil Rights Movement, and the explosion of musical diversity that came from the Woodstock Generation. Are you tired of the Mockingbirds in the Mainstream Media? The noise of information overload? Are you concerned about the future of the Nuclear Family and our unique American Experiment? If so you should derive some affirmation and energy from my work. I can promise you, what I have to say will never be heard in elevators.