A (Not So) Brief Introduction

Well, rather than trying to sum myself up in 1200 characters or whatever Blogger allows, I decided today that I should write a personal statement describing who I am and what I believe.  Instead of choosing a set of short cliches, this will allow me a series of longer, more verbose cliches.  I know that if anyone reads this, it will most likely be people who already know me, but it seems like an appropriate way to start, anyway.  I'm not completely sure where this is going, much like the blog itself, but here it is:

My name is Ken Susman, and I've decided that anonymity on the internet is no longer important to me, and I am not planning on hiding behind a pseudonym any longer.  As my friend Chris wrote on his blog, "I long ago gave up the pretense of web anonymity that many people cling to. To me, this is the natural corollary of all that "be yourself" advice you got in grade school." I agree.  It just took me longer to get there.  He got there long ago, and I got there last week.  I'm an adult and I'm not ashamed of my life or my opinions, so why should I write under an assumed name?  Doesn't make much sense.


I do, however, believe that people have a right to keep themselves anonymous, and I'm not going to break that.  Chris has clearly given up that pretense, so I'll call him Chris.  epods from my first post has not, so I'm not going to break it on her behalf.  Similarly, most of my family and friends are still remaining anonymous, or at least don't seem to have much interest in specifically putting themselves out there.  So, that's fine.  It's not my business to break that for them.


One thing that is my business is teaching.  I teach 8th grade English at a local middle school, and wouldn't trade it for anything.  Except for a chance to play major league baseball, be a guitar god, or a several million dollars.  I love what I do, but I'm not an idiot.  Why do I love it?  Because I feel like it's where I belong.  I love working with the kids and the faculty, and I love feeling like I'm making a difference.  Yeah, it's corny, but life isn't always profound.  Other things I love:  being done by 3:15 and summer break.  


Summer, for me, ends on Wednesday, and I'm damn excited about it.  This year is going to be huge for me, I think, both  professionally and personally.  Professionally, I'm taking on a series of new challenges and taking some new leadership roles.  What's exciting is that I am confident that the changes we're making are necessary and will prove to be incredibly effective once they're fully effected.  Additionally, I'm working with a committed and constantly growing group of teachers and administrators.  Plus, the school and the district are going to be moving the same direction, and it's a great feeling knowing that we're spearheading a broad and encompassing movement.  The wind is at our backs, and we're picking up speed.


Beyond professionally, of course, I'm getting married in just a few months, and I can't wait.  We've been together over two and a half years, and we've been engaged for almost a year.  It seemed like the day would never get here, but our invitations showed up the other day, and it's all very real right now.  And I'm actually more excited than I was before.  The future Mrs. SusBlogs and I are ready to roll--you know, except for the final 600 or 800 details.  I see it as the final set of challenges before the challenge of marriage.  So, this year:  challenges.  


It's not just teachin' and marryin' that gets me going.  Politics gets me rolling, especially these days.  I'm a proud progressive liberal.  And not a liberal like Obama--who I like well enough--but a real liberal.  I believe the government has the power to do immense good in the world.  Government can change lives in ways that no private company or institution can, and it should be used as an instrument of good.  It can guarantee that citizens have access to healthcare and education and food and shelter.  It can make sure that the arts and sciences have resources available to innovate and create.  It can require that companies act as good corporate citizens--keeping our air and water and land clean and habitable, as well as paying its employees a living wage for their work.  It can act internationally to end atrocities.  Government--particularly the American government--can and should be this force.  


Unfortunately, this is not what is happening.  Calvin Coolidge once said that "the chief business of the American government is business."  He was President just before the Great Depression.  His term ended only a few months before the stock market crashed.  Woodrow Wilson, on the other hand, once said that "the business of government is to organize the common interest against the special interests."  This is the government I want, but not the government I see.  The government that I see ends programs that help the seniors, children and the poor, and uses the money saved to cut taxes for the rich.  The government I see bombs countries all over the world in the name of national defense, and doesn't seem to worry about the consequences.  The country I see arrests people for smoking pot, but not for destroying the global economy.  The country I see tells a portion of the population that their love is not important and that the First Amendment the right to be a bigot trumps equality.  The country I see makes it clear that profits for corporations are more important than profits for workers.


But this country can change.  It's changed before, and it can change again.  I plan to be a part of it.  Do you?