What can progressive governments do when millions espouse views that are contrary to the norms of and claims for democracy, justice, and equality? The simple answer is that they should make sustained efforts to change minds and hearts, but, at the same time, and, actually and the first place, they should enact and enforce laws that preserve, protect, and expand democracy, justice, and equality.

The most enduring solvent to entrenched racial attitudes is actual equality, that is, equality in fact, in every sphere of life.

Watched “Blinded by the Light” last night. Probably the film won’t be a candidate for any awards, but the story line of a young Pakistani teenager trying to find his way in an unfriendly small English town and Springsteen’s music — I’m a big Bruce fan to begin with — really resonated with me. It made me laugh, cry a bit, and, notwithstanding the very obvious differences between his younger years and mine, it took me back to my teen years when the combination of small town living, the many prohibitions of the Catholic Church, sudden loss of my mother, a father who drank too much, and a step mother who was a task master left me feeling out of joint and in a box. I didn’t have Bruce Springsteen’s songs and lyrics at that time to give voice and authenticity to my feelings and dreams, but I did have those early rock and rollers — Elvis, Chuck Berry, and others — who could shake rattle and roll and some hard scrabble, beer drinking friends who brought some light into my life.

60 plus years later, I would like to say that I have it all figured out and everything is good, but that would be One Big Fat Lie.

Paul Krugman once again eviscerates the Republican Party. And to think that many on the left for a long time said there was no difference between the GOP and the Democrats. The persistence of this notion in left circles lies in the fact that too many on the left fear being tagged as insufficiently radical, as an opportunist. Thus protecting one’s left flank became a preoccupation, far more important than soberly looking at reality. This isn’t the only reason for this blind spot, but it wasn’t a minor factor either.

To say that a process of class de-alignment is occurring across Europe and the U.S. without any qualification strikes me as one sided at best. At worst it’s filled with a narrow, old, and simply mistaken understanding of the contemporary working class and its changing profile in these countries.