The Coming Year in Kentucky

A friend of mine, based in Massachusetts, the ultimate liberal "blue state," recently wrote the following comments to me about preconceived notions he held most of his life about the Commonwealth of Kentucky:

"Well, there is no coast, it seems conservative, bible-belt, blue collar, poor public education, red-neck, etc., etc., etc., (Can you begin to see my prejudice showing through?). OK, so my family members live just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati and (we)often find ourselves referring to (my daughter and son-in-law's) address as "the Cincinnati area", even when we admit that the actual residence is in Kentucky ...

"We have been to visit several times and find the area where they live to be quite charming. In fact we have visited ... family in Louisville and find that this area is also very nice. We still have not been able to assimilate this information in a way that actuallyimproves our opinion ...

"... I am very interested in the future of KY since my children live there, and perhaps one day my grandchildren will grow up there. I want to learn more about the liberal side of the state, the equality movement, etc. I know that even in Massachusetts, "Utopia", safety and openness is a relative thing and can vary significantly from location to location.

Well, buddy, here's what I can tell you.

I've lived in Kentucky's most southeastern city --- smack dab in the Cumberland Gap, on the border of two Old South states, Virginia and Tennessee --- for a year and a half now. I've seen all of the negative stereotypes that people have about the Bluegrass Commonwealth: lack of education, high unemployment, rampant recreational drug and alcohol use despite conservative influences that make some communities "dry," homophobia, racism, religious monomania, bad hairdos, rusty cars, rickety mobile homes, outdoor plumbing, moonshine and nasal singing.

On the other hand, I've seen determination to make things better, an awareness of the natural beauty around us, an appreciation for the blessings of life when they come at us, and a feeling of tolerance for everyone, including and especially those who are "different," because they break up the monotony of life. Education, when it can be obtained, is valued, and a steady job is appreciated. People tend to be forgiven for their past sins, especially if they've taken steps via a recovery program, and when you accept it on its own terms, bluegrass music can leave you feeling as clean and refreshed as a swim in a mountain spring.

Like the rest of the country, Kentucky is recovering from the fear and paranoia and general stupidity America has faced, at home and abroad, since the 2000 presidential election. Kentucky succumbed to the conservative downhill slide a few years back and elected Ernie Fletcher, the first Republican governor since a couple of generations back --- a mistake so bad that it was immediately turned around in last November's gubernatorial election and unlikely to be made again for another decade or so, no matter how bad the next few Democrats in the Statehouse turn out to be.

As someone partnered to an educator, I have great hopes that the new administration in Frankfort will keep one or two of its promises to improve access to higher education for Kentuckians. Lord knows, it's needed, and more importantly, it's genuinely desired. When I go out shopping with my partner, Robert, who teaches English at a local community college, we ALWAYS encounter some former student of his who tells him, "Mister, going to college (or taking your class) changed my life!" Whether it's a high school diploma, a General Equivalency Degree, a couple of years at college or even a bachelor's or master's degree, education is the primary fuel that is going to make Kentucky rise up out of the hollers long enough to get young people (and some who aren't so young) able to use their natural intelligence in ways that they can go back to those same hollers and make things better for everyone else, by becoming doctors, dental hygienists, skilled computer technicians and small business owners.

Robert says he'd like to see things improve to the point where people like him are not dealing with so many "non-traditional" students who dropped out of high school and earned their GEDS after having a couple of babies and/or a failed marriage. He supports the idea of improving what's offered at our high schools --- more emphasis on teaching and less emphasis on getting students able to pass tests --- so they can enter college and get a start on their careers at a pace equal to other students in states ranking higher on all those educational achievement lists.With better education, that means that we have people capable of holding down better jobs --- the kind that offer health insurance benefits. Kentucky, like every other state in the nation, is facing a major crisis in terms of health care, because no one, employer or employee, can afford it. It's pretty obvious that Bill and Hillary Clinton, who advocated a national health care plan back in the early 1990s, were on the right track, even as it was scoffed at and rejected by members of their own party. These days, with the best prices for medications being found online in Canada and India, the Hillary Healthcare proposal looks pretty good and may be one reason why she is very likely on her way to becoming the first woman to occupy the Oval Office (other than Monica Lewinsky, who only occupied it on a part-time basis, and then on her knees).

I'd like to see the Beshear-Mongiardo administration use their clout in influencing the U.S. Congress to start pushing for national health insurance. Since it's unlikely that our two U.S. senators from Kentucky, Republican hatchet man Mitch McConnell and that senile old boob, Jim Bunning, are likely to do anything that would help along these lines, it will be up to the governor and whatever members of the Kentucky delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives to work on behalf of this important cause.

Better access to education and health care means we have a better base of workers to draw from and as a result, there will be a need to bring jobs to put all these Kentuckians to work --- in Kentucky. Lieutenant Governor-elect Mongiardo was the point man for the Beshear administration' s proposal to develop tourism-related industries in Kentucky and especially, eastern Kentucky, where the mountains and valleys provide a perfect backdrop for outdoor-related tourism activities. In my own community of Middlesboro, with its access to both the gorgeous Cumberland Gap National Historic Park and Pine Mountain State Park, it's a perfect time to start promoting what we have. Hopefully, the two thriving educational institutions, Lincoln Memorial University (in nearby Harrogate, Tennessee) and Middlesboro' s own Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College, will continue to push the local movers and shakers to work to attract industries related to the needs of the educational communities AND the outdoor tourism fields.I couldn't end without stressing the importance of Kentucky --- and all states --- turning itself around on gay rights issues. Two major educational institutions have defied the cynical bigots in the state legislature by going ahead and offering same-sex domestic partner benefits to their employees, ensuring that the pool of potential state university workers can draw from the entire state and national workforce in attracting the best employees. The national trend among private employers is to offer such benefits --- I'm lucky enough to work for a company that has a non-discriminatory policy on issues of sexual orientation, including insurance issues. The failed social policies of the Fletcher gubernatorial and Bush presidential administrations are an indication that the country is on the verge of moving forward on gay rights issues. Kentucky, with its new gubernatorial administration, is in a perfect position to lead the rest of the country in showing what it means to respect and embrace diversity.

Of course, I'm realistic enough to know that it will take major changes in the state legislature to bring about any kind of progress for same-sex equality in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The state senate, in particular, is dominated by homophobes. But hopefully, gay and gay supportive people can energize themselves enough in the coming year to change a few hardened hearts and minds in our legislature.

Kentucky IS a beautiful place, from Ashland to Bowling Green, Paducah to Pippa Passes, Middlesboro to Covington and all those big cities and small town in between. The people are good --- sometimes a bit rough, but more often than not, surprisingly tolerant and with minds open enough to try out new ideas and give new and different folks a chance. I've been blessed to live in a town where the acceptance level, while not perfect, is certainly high, when it comes to newcomers. And, with the onset of a new gubernatorial administration --- and the possibility of significant positive change in the fall 2008 presidential and congressional elections --- I feel very certain that I'm in the right place at the right time.