The heat continues to rise, in political circles as well as social "grassroots" circles, ostensibly over the issue of President Obama’s commitment to Health Care reform. The rhetoric flies in both directions, voices getting shrill and loud, in the attempt to convince those on "the other side" of the discussion to abandon their own position and convert. One problem is that the louder everyone yells, the less anyone hears. Another problem is that the different sides of the issue don’t seem to be talking about the same thing most of the time; it’s hard to debate an issue when each side has a different target. What is funny and sad at the same time is that despite the urgency expressed by both sides, what Progressives and Conservatives both want is ideologically similar; it is the emotionally charged conviction of their own correctness that gets in the way of honest discussion. In fact, in some sense it boils down to personality and the perspective each of us brings to the table.
For instance, according to George Lakoff, one of the world’s leading cognitive linguists, the differences between Conservatives and Progressives is based on our personal view of family structure. Conservatives tend to believe that the world, and politics, should be a reflection of the traditional, strict, patriarchal structure of the idealized family best imagined in 1950’s sit-coms, where "Dad" (the government) tells his children (the citizenry) that they must follow his rules, be punished when they don’t, and that if they are "good", disciplined children, they will be rewarded with prosperity. Those who are not as "good" do not deserve to prosper. On the other hand, Progressives believe that the government should reflect nurturing, egalitarian "parents" that encourage their "children" to take care of themselves and others, because when we work well with others, we all succeed.
One of the loudest cries from the Right is the call for FREEDOM, although the rhetoric gets rather schizophrenic when demanding it. They are right in their position that this country was founded on the principles of individual freedom. Their passionate calls for government to "stay out of our lives", are valid, except that seems to be exactly what it is they do want when the personal and social lives of the "children" of the U.S. are not in accordance to their personally acceptable values. They have no problem with a government that will forbid freedom of choice when those choices are at odds with traditional, authoritarian, paternal family (government) standard.
The freedoms Conservatives do endorse have to do with businesses and corporations. This is a philosophy that assumes that corporations, like strict but loving fathers directing their naive children, will use their freedom from government regulations (social, financial, environmental) to act in the best interest of the people. Unfortunately, time and science has proven that not only do many of those determined fathers reveal themselves to be secretly abusive to their families, within their family structure, they are able to convince those abused members that what they are doing to them is also for their own good. Likewise, without oversight and government regulations, corporations-as-benefactors are often covert despots; under the carefully constructed veneer of the wise, fatherly protectors of jobs and economic strength, corporations regularly abuse the workforce that supports them, the environment that surrounds them, and any independent upstart that attempts to compete with them.
A Government that nurtures and supports its citizens goes a lot further in granting FREEDOM. When the government provides or supplements our basic needs by providing services like clean air and water, sewer and trash removal, worry-free health care, well-maintained roads and highways, we are free to concentrate on more (the most) important things—our families, communities, churches, schools, and our nation.
The Progressive ideology, when there is a consensus, reflects the idea that "we are all in this together" and that we are mandated by a higher authority to help each other.
"The king will answer them, 'I can guarantee this truth: Whatever you did for one of my brothers or sisters, no matter how unimportant [they seemed], you did for me.'
Matthew 25:40 (GWT Bible)
It starts, then, with a premise quite the opposite of the Conservative premise. The Progressive premise is that people are born good, and with encouragement, education, opportunity and a healthy mind and body, every one of us is capable of going from good to better—even to great! To accomplish this, "it takes a village to raise a child"...or a nation. It also supposes that the citizens of this country are capable of not only making our own moral decisions, but that we have been granted the right to do so. The Conservative belief in the Government’s duty to protect American citizens is absolutely correct...but they must accept that that responsibility applies to ALL Americans, not just to those with enough money to pay for it in the private "free market".
We all agree that the government is an unwanted intruder in a doctor’s office, or church, or at a family’s dining room table. But if the Government shows up there, as citizens, we have the power to get rid of that presence. When we allow corporations the level of power of government, we have no recourse. Anyone familiar with private "free marketeer" Bernard Madoff is familiar with that scenario. Free from any real oversight, this benevolent, "fatherly" patriarch promised his "children" that their money was being well-managed, used to promote the greater good, having a part in keeping the economy vigorous and healthy, and would provide great dividends at the end of the day. In the end, the only thing benefiting from Mr. Madoff’s counsel was Mr. Madoff.
This sad example is a small blip on the radar we must use to detect the false claims of supposedly patriotic and paternal industry powers. Do we really believe that lowering standards to which business must comply encourages them to take it upon themselves to make sure their plants don’t pollute our air or drinking water? Do we want to take a chance on breaking up unions and leaving decisions regarding salaries, working conditions, and responsibility for health care up to the generous nature of the "concerned" administrators of such companies?
Conservatives say they want no government; as the revered Saint Ronald Reagan famously quipped,
"We must not look to government to solve our problems. Government is the problem."
We have to admit, he was right about that one. Under Reagan, we were introduced to the very virtuous "greed is good" philosophy; voodoo "trickle down" economics that brought our nation to the brink of bankruptcy; the greatest tax cuts for the extremely wealthy in U.S. history; the largest increase in the Social Security tax on people making $30,000 per year or less; and the privatization of more and more of our own government, including the Armed Forces and prisons. Meanwhile, Reagan was also pulling back on regulations designed to prevent corporations from becoming more powerful than the government and less responsive to American workers.
"Government is the problem." That’s probably one area where Progressives and Conservatives might find a brief moment of agreement! The difference is that at this point in our history, the Conservatives are doing everything they can to maintain the status quo that Reagan set up 30 years ago, even though the citizens of this nation made a resounding cry for change last November.
In the typical arrogant, bullying manner that we’ve grown so accustomed to in the past 30 years, the Right has resurrected the patronizing strategy that suggests that they are the wise, good, disciplined father-figure for all of us, anointed by God due to their obviously superior "GOOD-ness". They must make the decisions for the nation, because their success has been ordained by God It is to protect our nation’s hallowed corporations, they argue, and for our own good, that they spend millions of dollars every day on industry shills and media outlets to present and endlessly repeat their cultivated "wisdom" on the issues that is not only intentionally false, but frightening as well.
The ethical folks in the health insurance industry have made it their mission to convince American citizens that health benefits are to be extended to the privileged and wealthy few, and must be denied to those not living a life virtuous enough to be able to afford it. After all, if those people would simply follow the rules and "be a grownup" they would be able to afford to pay for their own health benefits. Because those righteous men sitting at the top of the health insurance companies who make between $10 and $27 million dollars each year "deserve" that kind of salary, even if they do make that money by denying payment for Dad’s liver biopsy because he hadn’t called ahead to clear it with some secretary at the insurance company before his trip to the emergency room, or tripling the monthly premium now that Mom has been diagnosed with a heart condition.
The Conservatives cry, "Keep your government out of my health care", while Progressives cry, "Keep your corporations out of my government".
The Conservative belief is that the government is there only to defend American citizens. Personally, I feel a lot more protected by a government that provides me with the power to change my mind, that provides the name of the person in charge of the program, and that respects me enough to be able to choose for myself what is best for me and my own family. Don’t we all prefer a government that encourages personal freedom, that provides for the fundamental right to a healthy life, and that advocates the pursuit of happiness for all of its children?