Second Opinion : THE SENTINEL : What Drives Angry White Men?

It was first reported that the [Oklahoma City] bombing had the fingerprints of international terrorism emanating from the Middle East. Wrong! Then it was reported that possibly the Nation of Islam was behind the bombing. Wrong! Finally, it became clear that angry white American men were the [accused] culprits.

Why are white men so angry? Probably for essentially the same reason that the rest of us are angry--not enough meaningful jobs paying livable wages; an unaffordable and declining health care system; a failing educational system; great and growing inequality in the country and a lack of bold and courageous leadership with a vision big enough to take the country where it needs to go, and the moral authority to lead it there.

The difference between many angry white men and the rest of us may be that the “rainbow of the rejected” have often been forced to see life from the underside. Through such experiences we have been forced to develop the spiritual, emotional and physical strength to cope and overcome adversity; to turn stumbling blocks into stepping stones. For many white men, a declining economy, lost jobs, lost wages and lost farms are new experiences. They had not been forced to develop the spiritual strength to cope with such life-destroying circumstances. Thus, their anger is seething and literally exploding.