Mary Katherine Ham takes a look at one of John Edwards' "Two Americas." The one with the squash court. Click to link to find out why Ham wrote, "If a Wal-Mart had wanted to clear-cut that much land in Chapel Hill, the unwashed, protesting, green masses on Franklin Street would still be screaming about it."
Ham notes the disconnect between Edwards' success and his political message:
John Edwards spent his working career building this luxurious life for himself from fairly humble beginnings, and he will spend the rest of his political career trying to convince the rest of America that his story is an impossibility in "George Bush's America."
John Edwards is trying to sell class envy and despair, though the American electorate often reacts much more positively to hope. America is still a land of opportunity - that's why it has 12 million illegal immigrants. John Edwards' success is not a fluke, and not an impossibility for anyone willing to work hard (though it would be better if they worked hard at something useful rather than in suing doctors based on junk science, which is how Edwards compiled his fortune).
Immigrants - legal and illegal - know that Edwardian success is possible in America. They also know that success of varying levels is possible - success isn't measured by the square footage of your house or the acreage of your property. A good job and healthy children is success for many. And that kind of success is not only still possible in America, it is the norm.
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