A few weeks ago as I sat pondering the consistent failure of our federal government to protect its citizens through regulation (mine disaster, financial crisis, oil spill) and the policies put in place by both states and federal government that will hurt those that need help the most and ensure the wealthy and powerful stay wealthier and more powerful (Arizona immigration law, Supreme Court ruling on campaign finance) I thought about what my ideal political party would stand for.
I know I am not alone in my disenfranchisement with the current Democratic Party. For 8 years I saw our country get worse and worse in pretty much every way imaginable, and for 8 years I thought, "This will all change when my team takes over." I didn’t love Barack Obama, but I did believe his message of change, and I assumed that once we had 60 votes plus the presidency everything was going to be OK. I had so much confidence in this fact that about a year ago I stopped watching the news or reading the political blogs. Why bother, everything was going to be alright.
It’s only now that I am starting to feel the same skepticism I saw in others (particularly my elders) when I informed them that the Democrats were going to fix the world. They’ve seen it all before, history repeats, and in reality the Democrats aren’t much better than the Republicans. It’s not that they are bad people. I believe our Senators and Congress people are all patriots at heart, with a strong desire to make our country a better place.
The problem is that the system our country is built on is broken. Somewhere along the line we went terribly wrong, and it can no longer be fixed from the inside. It can’t because the two parties that built it are too similar to each other and too tied into what exists now.
Coincidentally, the same day I sat pondering what my new political party would look like, I came across this post from Kos:
"I am progressive. I am liberal. I make no apologies. I believe government has an obligation to create an even playing field for all of this country's citizens and immigrants alike. I am not a socialist. I do not seek enforced equality. However, there has to be equality of opportunity, and the private sector, left to its own devices, will never achieve this goal."
It was actually the first Daily Kos blog post, and it was referenced on the 8 year anniversary of the blog (May 26th). Those few principles would make a pretty good founding statement for a political party. Based on current events, I might add a few points:
• Clean air, clean water, and clean beaches are the right of all citizens and should be granted as such in the Constitution.
• A corporation is not a legal entity, nor is it a person. It only serves people, and therefore should receive none of the rights granted to individuals, but also bear greater responsibilities.
• Term limits should be required for every elected government position, as well as the Supreme Court.
I think our country can change and that most people want change, but it’s evident that the change required won’t come from either of the political parties we have now. Hopefully as a nation we will someday reconcile that fact.