A Principled Man

Every election year, I always recall a political lecture I got from my father when I was sixteen years old. Several of my friends were getting much better summer-paying jobs through political connections and I knew that I could exercise that through my sports' involvement-connections and friendships. I told my dad of my intentions to tap that resource. I was somewhat surprised at his adamant refusal to allow that process to unfold.
He told me, "You accept those kinds of favors from a politician and soon they will tell you who to vote for and how much money you should contribute to a person's campaign." He went on say, "I'll be damned if any kid of mine is going to owe something to a politician. Therefore while many of my friends were making $2.85 per hour 'holding ' a highway road sign, I was sweating my ass off in a St. Louis factory raking in a whopping $1.65 per hour. The years?? 1956-57.