I am waiting.
I am waiting for the Democratic Party to stop playing politics and again be a voice of values and vision.
I just watched Nancy Pelosi address reporters prior to the summer recess, and her message was, IMHO, that the party was in search of rather than in possession of a meaningful platform. She was more interested in defeating the Republicans than in crafting a Democratic win.
We, the people, want, deserve, and will respond to a unified, consistent platform of vision based on common values.
If I were a Democratic leader, I would make seven visions my mantra, and eight values my touchstone.
I would be repeating those seven and eight with vigor and without distraction (in the manner of the proverbial “dog with three legs”).
They represent the goals of our country (as a collection of our individual life goals) and the means by which we can get there (reflecting our personal values).
(all with a tip of the hat to Milton Rokeach and his study of terminal and instrumental values: what we hope to get out of our lives and how we lead our lives to get there.)
What are those seven goals and eight means?
My vision is of a nation which strives for:
A Sense of Accomplishment - a nation in which every citizen could feel that her/his life was productive, where the honest labors of all find recognition and reward.
A World of Peace - a world in which we are respected, not feared, because we have shown by example how to focus on peace, not conflict, as a means to bring people together
Equality - a nation in which every citizen experiences the rights and responsibilities in each measure.
Family Security - a nation in which no one needs to worry about the security of their lives in terms of health and retirement, nor about their safety anywhere in their country.
Freedom - a nation which respects the civil rights of all as vital to the preservation of liberty, and will not infringe on those rights for the sake of serving political or parochial interests.
National Security - a nation which provides for its deepest security by maintaining a government which embodies its core values without hypocrisy while providing for the common defense through defense, not offense.
Self-Respect - a nation in which every citizen can hold his/her head high, because none would be belittled by a lack of education, a lack of health care, or the stigma of poverty. All can hold their heads high because of respect in the international community.
To fulfill this vision, we would try to be:
Broadminded - we are at our best, and have always been at our best, when we have led the world through an inclusivity which was the envy of oppressed people everywhere. When we retreat to a narrow-mindedness we betray this great legacy of our heritage.
Capable - our national treasure has always been our “can do” attitude, one which helped us cross a continent, land on the moon, and pioneer in nearly every field of modern scientific endeavor. We need to re-affirm that we will be capable, not fearful, in facing the challenges of the future.
Courageous - ours has never been a nation which cowered in fear, rising instead in courage to many challenging occasions. A rekindling of national courage would help us from seeing ourselves as a victimized nation.
Helpful - we need to recover our role of being helpful in the world, not confrontational. The truly helpful respond to need, not to political opportunism. There was a time when the world sang our praises because we were a good neighbor.
Honest - nothing else will matter if our nation does not know itself as essentially honest. Whether on matters of international action, national leadership, or local citizenship, the bottom line needs to be “Is it the truth?”
Imaginative - America was created in the imaginations of freedom-loving colonists, nurtured in the imaginative developments of two centuries, and now can lead the world into the emerging century by an equal measure of creativity. Giving official sanction to the systems of thought of the past denies our national imaginative possibilities. A vital America dreams!
Independent - our first President, Mr. Washington, warned us against foreign entanglements, knowing that the greatest strength of our integrity as a nation was that America should be beholden to none. We need to review how we have made our nation, and therefore all of our citizens, more dependent than independent.
Responsible - no nation can long stand which is not responsible to its people and its principles. Whether in the form of public audits of the use of our funds, impeachment of elected officials who abuse their office, openness of all government activities without undue restrictions, and an electorate which is active not passive, the mutual responsibility of the governed and the government to each other must be honored.
And so these questions:
A Sense of Accomplishment -
can each of us say that we feel the present system allows us fulfillment?
A World of Peace -
do we believe the world is a more peaceful place because of our national actions?
Equality -
do all of our citizens have equal access to the blessings of our nation?
Family Security -
do we feel that we are secure in our households with a promise of adequate health care, retirement, and safety?
Freedom -
do we feel that our personal freedoms are protected?
National Security -
do we now feel safer here in the US?
Self-Respect -
can all of our citizens expect to have access to education, health care, and a living wage which engender self-respect?
Broadminded -
are our national policies ones of inclusion or exclusion?
Capable -
are we, as a nation, working up to our capabilities?
Courageous -
are we fearful or courageous in meeting today’s challenges?
Helpful -
are we perceived around the world as helping or hurting?
Honest -
are our leaders being honest and open with us?
Imaginative -
are we on the cutting-edge of creativity, or have we become a nation of “followers?”
Independent -
does it feel like our nation can act with a spirit of independence, or do we owe too much to too many to be truly independent?
Responsible -
does it feel to us like our elected leaders represent us, or have they become irresponsible toward the people?
That’s the vision I want my party to articulate:
A Sense of Accomplishment
A World of Peace
Equality
Family Security
Freedom
National Security
Self-Respect
guided by being
Broadminded
Capable
Courageous
Helpful
Honest
Imaginative
Independent
Responsible
The details of specific programs, of specific bills can come later. Get the vision and the values down first.
And forget about defeating the Republicans - worry about fashioning a Democratic win out of our vision for the future built on the values we cherish.
Don't point fingers - lead the way!