Beard of the Week XX: Election Day
In recognition of American democracy's return from a near-death experience with yesterday's election, this week's beard is presidential: it belongs to Ulysses Grant, the eighteenth president* of the United States (from 1869 to 1877). I have nothing to say politically about Grant. He's always been far down on anyone's list of greatest US presidents, but at least he'll never reach the bottom, thanks to the election of George W. Bush.
No, Mr. Grant is here today strictly on the strength of his beard, probably the finest beard among US presidents. Not that there are so many to choose from. John Quincy Adams and his huge muttonchops don't do much for me; Lincoln is almost too familiar; Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, and Benjamin Harrison put forward impressive contenders, but were far less interesting presidents than Grant. Chester A. Arthur's beard is not so impressive, although he does get credit from me for hosting the Meridian Conference of 1884, which ushered in time zones for the world. Had we been considering all manner of facial hair, however, my choice definitely would have been Theodore Roosevelt, undoubtedly my favorite president on criteria of looks.
There were several issues surrounding this election that were settled in ways that suited me. While I don't care that another half dozen states have adopted ridiculous "marriage protection" amendments to their constitutions, it is heartening that Arizonans voted not to follow the rest of the nation's knee-jerk homophobia. Not to be over optimistic, but I'm inclined to think that we gay people may no longer be the critical Republican wedge issue we once were, and American may finally have turned the corner on the long route to recognizing gay equality.
I've noted before the unabashed misogyny I once saw on display in the early Clinton years (c. 1994) when I saw Charlie Rose talking with a table full of angry white male conservatives about Clinton's universal health-care proposal; they couldn't seem to talk about the proposal because they were so busy vilifying Hillary Clinton for being a strong woman. I think my jaw dropped open at the spectacle.
The attitude persists with Republican's disparaging Nancy Pelosi, the presumptive speaker of the House. For at least this reason I'm pleased that Democrats won a majority so that she and her "San Francisco values" can be a daily reminder to Denny Hastert that feminism can be a force for good.
Yes, I do — occasionally — indulge in schadenfreude.
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*Remarkably, elected as a Republican — i.e., the "party of Lincoln".
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on Wednesday, 8 November 2006 at 19.42
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Grant's autobiography, Personal Memoirs, is supposedly the most literary work ever written by a US President. I haven't read it yet — I'm only on Madison in my reading of the US presidents' biographies in order of service — but I'm looking forward to reading it, hopefully prior to my dotterage.
It is worth considering that if Sherman hadn't given his Shermanesque refusal to accept nomination to run for president, post US Civil War reconstruction might have continued through a long enough time that the Jim Crowe US south might've never happened. For his time, Grant was a progressive, anti-racist, influence on the nation, and I'm coming to believe he is underappreciated as a president.
But regardless of "History — What If," Grant does have a sweet beard.
on Thursday, 9 November 2006 at 00.37
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I did a little background reading for this post about Grant, and I got hints that his reputation was undergoing a reevaluation along the lines you mention. Which would be fine with me: improving reputation and great beard!