Ben Carson is the Horatio Alger of our time
To the editor:
Dr. Ben Carson meet Horatio Alger. Horatio Alger was a prolific writer of the 19th century. Alger’s most famous works are the tales of “rags to riches” impoverished youth that made it big in their adulthood. Alger consistently wrote of poor lower socio-economic youth growing up in cities in which the youth, through hard work, thrift, discipline, and diligence made it big. They pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps. Despite their impoverished circumstances and possible excuses, these Alger’s youth would have none of that, and chose to be successful adults. Horatio Alger, if alive today, would be writing about Dr. Ben Carson.
The longer the presidential campaign goes on, the more Americans like Dr. Ben Carson. The longer the campaign goes on, the more voters love Dr. Ben Carson. Folks I know that think most politicians are probably on the take, stupid, or evil; seem to really like Dr. Ben Carson. We have heard much from Dr. Carson in 2015, and the way things are shaping up, it would not be a surprise to hear from him a great deal more in 2016.
Dr. Carson is a retired neurosurgeon. He went to the public schools in Detroit, Michigan. Because of his excellence in JROTC, Carson was offered an appointment at West Point. Carson turned down the appointment to go to Yale University where he earned his B.A. degree. Carson received his M.D. from the University of Michigan. He completed his residency in neurosurgery at John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. And biographical information just as crucial, Carson gives great credit to the Book of Proverbs in the Bible for his success. Carson believes that his faith has allowed him to be more disciplined, less angry, and more positive about what the future can hold, not what the past wanted to do to him.
By now, many Americans, and even more voters have heard of this modern day “rags to riches” Horatio Alger hero. He was born into a single-parent family. He was raised by a very hardworking, loving mother. He was raised in abject poverty in the projects. He began his education in a failing public school. He had a great deal of life’s negativity going against him. He could have blamed his family, the government, and God for all of his circumstances; but he chose not to. With a great deal of credit going to his no-nonsense mom, Dr. Ben Carson made a lot of great choices. We often tell our kids, grandkids, and students today, that despite all the obstacles in life you face which are not fair, make good choices and positive decisions; and your life will indeed be better off. We tell them that their environment does not have to determine their destiny.
Dr. Ben Carson did just that. He believed it and he lived it. A real life story that Horatio Alger could not have conjured up and written any better. Carson’s faith, hard work, discipline, courage, and consistently making the right choices have made him a role model of what can be done despite the environmental and cultural circumstances. The environment did not determine Carson; Carson determined the environment. Carson seems to be more of a positive character out of Jimmy Stewart’s “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” movie rather than of the real life “millennial me” generation.
Dr. Ben Carson has publically condemned Obamacare and he even did so in front of President Obama. Because of Carson’s swipe at the throne of Obama, some believe he was audited by the IRS in less than six months. The Obama administration has used the IRS against his political enemies in ways that Richard Nixon only dreamed about. Obama’s IRS had to clear Dr. Carson of any wrong doings. Carson knows first hand that it is illegal and corrupt to use the IRS against political enemies. Carson has also condemned socialized medicine. Dr. Carson knows we must support Israel or America is finished as a world power. Carson disagrees with Obama picking Iran and the ayatollahs over our one true friend in the Middle East, Israel. Dr. Carson believes that it is a good thing for the free world that America be the beacon of hope and opportunity. And that we can not shy away from our world wide responsibilities. Carson believes that all lives matter. Dr. Carson believes the babies, not fetuses but babies, lives in the womb matter. Carson has operated many times on babies still in the womb so that they can see daylight soon. Carson believes that he was operating on a human being inside the womb. Carson believes that turning a blind eye to illegal immigration is a country committing suicide. Because of all these many values that Carson believes in , many Americans are beginning to believe in Carson. Carson is an unapologetic, God fearing, flag waving, humble American. Of the Presidents in the last 50 years, Carson most resembles Ronald Reagan in his childhood, his growing up, his being a self made man, and his politics. Of note, Reagan read a lot of Horatio Alger novels when he himself was growing up.
Hopefully, the racial epithets hurled at Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, will not be thrown at Carson. Both the conservative Carson and Thomas have both had an extra burden to bear because of their Republican conservativism. Hopefully, the inside the beltway fat cats from Wall Street to Washington, D.C. won’t target their riches against Carson. Hopefully, the Chamber of Commerce’s candidate, Jeb Bush, will understand what a truly remarkable man Carson is, and not use the Chamber’s dollars to ridicule and belittle Carson. The permanent political class gets very nervous when they are not in control of a candidate for the White House. Carson makes them anxious. One thing is for sure, Dr. Ben Carson is the man that books are written about, movies are made of, and role models are envisioned. Dr. Ben Carson, Dr. Ben Carson, you have a phone call on line one, from a Mr. Horatio Alger.
Andrew William Coy
Fort Myers