We have been told by the 24 hour news machine for the last 8 years that Americans are concerned with their tax cuts, keeping gays from getting married, and fighting terrorists no matter what the cost. This incessant meme has pervaded the discourse of politics in America, "We are a center-right Christian nation." Every time Progressive values have been raised, they have been mocked as socialism or fascism or insert-scary-sounding-thing-ism. Progressive policies have been demonized time and again, with the same tired arguments, despite evidence again and again that they work at home and abroad.
Let us turn our attention to the "War on Drugs" in Colombia. For those of you living in a cave for the last 40 years, you may not be aware that America declared a war on drugs in 1969 under President Nixon. Since then we have clearly been winning big, as you are all aware no one in America uses drugs anymore. Or we have spent trillions of dollars on a failed initiative while drug use and acceptance have remained steady or climbed
In furthering our obsession with keeping the smack off the streets we have turned to Colombia, the world's leading producer of yayo (cocaine for those not in the know), and given them billions of dollars of aid. We instructed them for decades to use this aid to fight paramilitary drug factions and eradicate the coca crop (from where cocaine is derived). They heeded our request faithfully and have spent years waging an endless war, a revolving door of crop destruction, corruption, and ultimately resulting in MORE COCA PRODUCTION. This myopic tragedy should continue indefinitely if you were to ask the pundits (left and right probably).
These are all interesting facts, I'm sure because I wrote them down, but what does this have to do with progressives or progressive values. Well, today it was announced that we are beginning to see some success in curbing coca production. How did we do it? Did we slaughter a drug cartel, maybe firebomb some fields, spray the whole damn country with herbicide? No, we helped the Colombian government build roads, schools, and offer financial and food aid to a poor remote Colombian village.
Here [in Colombia] the initiative begun 2 years ago targeted one of Colombia's most Narco-infested areas. Colombia's government first came in militarily, using helicopters to ferry in troops. They drove out gorillas, paid eridactors and volunteers then pulled up coca bushes. State agencies arrived next, they paved roads, built schools, and offered health services. Other countries, like the United States, have helped. Perhaps the most crucial component has been providing coca farmers with emergency food aid, along with seeds, fertilizer, technical help, and capitol.
That was the magic bullet, bringing progress and hope to a region that before could only see planting coca and selling it to Marxist rebels as the way to survive. Now this village cultivates rice and sugar cane, and the villagers no longer have to strike a deal with the devil to get the food they need. That was all, if you give people an alternative to a dangerous and crime riddled life, they will take it. Progress brought these people a new hope, in their own words, "Peace has brought Prosperity."
The Progressive value of helping these people, through the judicious use of government aid, not to create dependency, but to foster growth, has worked wonders. The land is more valuable, the people have turned away from a life of crime, and the people are happy and productive.
Progressive values are American values, and it is high time that we started holding up examples of Progressive policies working. The next time some blowhard pundit talks about the Frenchifying or Swedenizing of America, someone should be there to point out in how many ways France and Sweden have bested us in healthcare, education, and social services. I say this not because I love Socialist Europe and can't stand America, but because I believe America can take these ideas and systems and with a strong Progressive agenda build a better, stronger, happier nation.