Burn of the Day
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
For some reason, it amuses me more that the Burn of the Day is aimed at Bernie Sanders…
Nobody gets Catholic Social Teaching because it’s never been properly clarified. The point of departure is an economy wherein master craftsmen and their families, journeymen, and apprentices live under one roof. Not very instructive for today’s employers.
I wouldn’t begrudge Mr. Sanders his housing arrangements bar that he could afford them because of the synergy generated between his wife’s background as a social worker and the public sector positions he held, which allowed her entree to spots in the higher education nomenklatura (which almost certainly have been unavailable had she been the wife of a Republican pol).
Recall Michael Kinsley’s remark that in official Washington, a man’s reputation expands (“like a gas”) to fill whatever position he occupies. (Kinsley was too mindful of his audience to apply the observation to Democratic pols). John Kerry is at bottom an unremarkable Boston lawyer; he was in private practice for four years, leaving it at age 39. (His law partner landed a judicial appointment at age 37). Bernie Sanders was a 40 year old bachelor who had an hourly position working for the local historical society; he found his niche in municipal government. Joseph Biden was an associate in a suburban law firm notable for having a dearth of work to do. Barack Obama was an associate (for three years) in a 12 lawyer firm; he was also an adjunct at a law school, taught filler electives, and never published one scholarly article. Dianne Feinstein in her prime was a more impressive figure than any of these characters, but at bottom she was a society wife who got involved in politics because looking after a household of three wasn’t occupying her time.