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Always trust your car to the man who wears the star*
The photo further down below (juxtaposed with a very recent one of me) is of CSA Gen. William F. Payne — one of my distant paternal bloodline (I am descended on my father’s side from a branch of the Virginia Payne’s that made its way to the deep South and then to Mississippi and Texas, something touched on in this blog entry of mine: When cancer struck family – and what turned things around). Most folks who have viewed photos of me and Gen. Payne were quick to exclaim “You can’t help but see the resemblance!” or “The resemblance is uncanny”. Typically, I would respond by nodding my head and then throw in the fact my great-great-grandfather Richard Payne (Tupelo, MS) served in the Confederate Army (Corporal, CSA Calvary) – and I am a Texan born and bred. I would say nothing about my maternal American Indian ancestry and the fact I am a BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) certified (CBID card-carrying) American Indian and a tribal member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Why? I was curious as to how many people would run with what they knew and assume me to be a political conservative, far right-winger, or worse. Some did. Some didn’t. What was sad – and alarming – was the fact some of those who assumed that I had to be a “good old boy” (Southern fried bigot and white supremacist) left no doubt but that they were. Before parting company, I would share the fact that I am (and identify as) an American Indian and also have been a member of the Democratic Socialists of America since 1986! (Albeit I am one of the few DSAers who is essentially pro-life). I would also add that as one whose American Indian ancestors were marched at bayonet point from their homes in various southern states to Oklahoma (Trail of Tears, 1830 to 1905), I know something about the role of racism, white supremacy, and government deception/overreach in US history and its tragic consequences. And, as an American Indian, I put a high premium on the inherent right of all peoples to choose what they believe or don’t, as well as how they will live out these beliefs (Of course actions that violate civil and/or criminal laws can be costly).
In a word, my weltanschauung is far removed from that of my antebellum ancestors, as well as many of my contemporaries in the Deep South and elsewhere. However, as I stated in a 5-5-2016 blog entry:
One of the things I discovered early on in my work as a theorist is that truth, not only in science but in most other areas of life, is arrived at haltingly in the form of what famed astronomer Edwin Hubble characterized as “successive approximations”.
As such, I accept that none of us has truth all wrapped up in any realm, secular or sacred, but instead possess a mix of beliefs, facts, and insights that vary in terms of the degree they approach what is “indisputably true” (in the absolute or final sense).
This way of approaching reality tends to put brakes on becoming so polarized (politically or otherwise) as to stop listening to worthy contrary opinions. And even when a particular belief, conviction, prophecy or what-have-you turns out to have little or no merit, I do not turn my back on the speaker, writer or such and head for the proverbial exit (Unless the speaker, writer, or such consistently doles out material that is so intellectually and/or morally bankrupt as to lead only to error or harmful deception).
Reiterated in this blog entry A false prophet calls out the master purveyor of falsehoods (File this under “Talk about the pot calling the kettle black”) | For Seekers & Other Heretics (wordpress.com)
In light of all this, you would be wise not to “trust your car” to any man (or woman) who wears the star (e.g., QAnon, neo-confederates, Alt-Right, extremists on the left, etc.) With this said I simply could not resist using the old Texaco slogan as the title of this blog entry.
© 2021 by Dr. Anthony G. Payne. All rights reserved.
* Texaco gasoline company ad slogan from the 1960s.
For Seekers & Other Heretics 