Understanding the Biden Voter

After Trump's election in 2016, several books came out, including J.D. Vance's overhyped Hillbilly Elegy, which attempted to explain the "Trump voter."

So, not to be outdone, here's my "Biden Voter for Dummies" guide.

First of all, the Biden voter reads lots of good books, old and new. Maybe start with David McCullogh's John Adams, and follow that up with McCullogh's 1776. Try Richard Reeves' President Kennedy: Profile in Power. Add on Braungart and McDonough's Cradle to Cradle, and revisit Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. For some heavy reading, go back more than a century to Alfred Thayer Mahan's The Influence of Sea Power upon History, followed by ADM (Ret.) James Stavridis' Sea Power: The History and Geopolitics of the World's Oceans to get a 21st-century perspective. Instead of Vance, try David Joy's The Weight of This World or Where All Light Tends to Go which focus on meth and opioids in the southern Appalachians. And if you want to learn more about the intersection of racism and economics in the South, Wiley Cash's historical novel The Last Ballad will explain why there were no unions in the Carolina cotton mills.

And the Biden voter listens to music. Iris Dement, James McMurtry, Jason Isbell, Tyler Childers are a good start. The Drive-by Truckers and American Aquarium have new releases talking about politics and life in the pandemic. Try anything, and everything, that has Rhiannon Giddens involved. And most of all, all of John Prine - the entire catalog. Or make it simple by tuning in to WNCW 88.7 FM, or stream at https://www.wncw.org/.

And begin and end with the Bible. Start with Isaiah and Ezekiel and Micah to get a glimpse of what God might have to say about what a just and righteous society should look like.

Reading and listening to all that will help you understand the Biden voter. 

Good luck!