As Ms. Crissie sorted through this week's mail, personal responsibility was a common theme. We are pleased that so many people are concerned about personal responsibility. We are not so pleased with the way some people interpret that phrase.
We welcome you to join us on an odyssey of responsibility, below the crisp but delicate fold....
And speaking of crisp but delicate, we'll wait while you prepare a breakfast of French toast and fruit juice to go with your morning coffee. Waiting gives us more time to sift through the mail bag....
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Dear Ms. Crissie,
I'm sure you saw that I gave a speech to the Conservative Political Action Committee this week. I even wrote a book that lays out four principles of conservatism: respect for the Constitution, respect for life, less government, and personal responsibility. I think these are good principles. Do liberals believe in personal responsibility?
Jonathan in GA
Dear Jonathan,
First, Happy Birthday! You're now 14, and we think you are well on your way toward an engaged form of citizenship that we applaud. We disagree with your political philosophy, but we are pleased that you are forming one and can articulate it so well.
And yes, we progressives do believe in personal responsibility. We just don't think it begins and ends with ourselves. The Constitution you so correctly esteem begins with the words: "We the People, in order to form a more perfect Union." We are a "we," not an aggregate of "me-s." So we conceive of personal responsibility as being responsible to and for each other, as well as for ourselves. And because our Constitution esteemed that in its opening, and our Constitution is the foundational document of our government, we progressives see government as one tool We the People can use to meet our responsibilities to and for each other. We the People can, for example, use government to foster a respect for life by ensuring every American has access to education and health care, so they can pursue their dreams and enrich our body politic without constant fear of bankruptcy due to injury or illness.
Finally, we are informed that your political exploration began with talk radio. We are pleased that you began your civic journey, but we ask you to explore beyond the "much heat but little light" of that medium and engage more deeply in reading. You've written a book, so you certainly can appreciate the benefits of "silent conversations" with the printed page. Read more, and more widely, with an open but critical mind. You have much to commend you, and we wish you a future filled with wonder, with hope, with courage, and with success.
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Comrade Crissie,
Yeah, patronize the kid. Why not pick on someone your own size? I also spoke at CPAC and I've talked about personal responsibility for years. It's about looking after you and yours, not everyone else. What a bunch of socialist hogwash. America was built by tough, hardworking men who took care of their own wives and kids, not by mealy-mouthed, panty-waisted platitudes. You and your kind are out to destroy America, and I'm not afraid to tell people what to think about you.
Rush in FL
Dear Rush,
As this is a discourse of minds rather than a bullying match, we think Jonathan is more likely our size than you are. We choose not to engage your sexist diatribe, but we will engage your sexist history. Our great nation was built by men and women, and children, who forged of many backgrounds and cultures a set of common dreams, and worked together to help realize those dreams. Much of that work was done in hearth and home and was done out of love rather than in pursuit of profit. Much of it was communal, from barn raisings to pot luck dinners and meals prepared for and shared with those who were injured or ill. We took care of "our own," yes, but we thought "our own" included our neighbors as well. Had our species been as selfish as you advocate, most of us would have become feline excrement on the savanna, and without Oxycontin to mute the agony of our demise.
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Dear Ms. Crissie,
As you probably saw this week, I've been trying to talk about personal responsibility also. In my address to Congress, I spoke of dropping out of school as not only quitting on yourself, but quitting on your country. And there were other points where I spoke to our personal responsibility to and for each other as a nation. Do you have any advice for continuing this dialogue with the American people, and encouraging all of us to see that we must look beyond ourselves and invest in each other?
Barack in D.C.
Dear Mr. President,
We did see your speech, and we were heartened to hear you reframe ideas of responsibility and patriotism to include our investing in and caring for each other. We would think it the height of hubris to advise you on political discourse, as you are both well-principled and well-trained in that high art. But as you asked, we invite you to encourage and lead a more open and challenging discussion on how we have a responsibility to each other, and to our descendants, to examine our abuses of human rights and violations of our Constitution and laws.
You have shown a remarkable willingness to speak to us as if we are adults, to engage us on complex issues that often lack easy answers, to trust that we are neither foolish nor foolhardy, but willing and able to think and act responsibly when entrusted with the facts. We ask that you extend that trust to include the powers of your office, and the way those powers have been abused. We suggest you will find that most of us seek not revenge but justice, no political purge but a reminder of and reawakening to our civic ideals.
Thank you for your commitment to, your love of, and your trust in We the People, Mr. President. We wish you every success, and we pray that you will continue to encourage us to reflect and build on the principles and values you not only espouse but embody.
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Dear Crissie,
French toast? Didn't I get rid of all things French years ago, when I was in the House of Representatives? Do you want the terrorists to win? How can you write about personal responsibility and invite people to eat French toast?
Just kidding. That was the old me. The new me works for a liberal radio station and has since I got out of prison. I was wrong to accept favors from Jack Abramoff, but I think I was prosecuted as an act of revenge for my opposition to Dick Cheney's policy on Iran. I accepted personal responsibility for what I did, but I've come to realize that politics as bloodsport is irresponsible and fosters a bloodthirsty culture.
Anyway, back to French toast. We need a ruling: cinnamon and sugar, or no? Which is more French?
Bob in OH
Dear Bob,
We find it pointless to offer rulings on issues of personal taste. As to which is more French, our research suggested that too is difficult to answer, as what Americans call "French toast" is a recipe dating to the 4th century Romans. It is, simply, a way to rescue stale bread, by dipping it in whipped egg (often with milk added) and pan-frying it. As fluffy, French bread will almost always be stale by the next morning, it became a popular breakfast in that country, but is also common in most other cultures. So you may add cinnamon and sugar, or not, as fits your and your family's palates.
And we are both pleased with and proud of your personal growth through that trial. You give us hope that we can all find new meaning, and new ideas, in difficult times.
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Happy Sunday!