MY BIASES 10/17/05
My biases change as I learn more about democracy - from reading, from interviewing
people, and from just thinking about it. See below for a statement of my earlier
biases.
I think the democracy is a good thing. I think it's a good thing, not just
because I like the sound of the word, but because it CAN deliver justice and
a measure of equality to all members of a society if large numbers of citizens
value those goals.
Not everybody wants justice and a measure of equality. A good many people who have done well for themselves are not eager to give up the advantages they have and are not enthusiastic about proposed changes in government procedures that would strengthen the voice of the disenfranchised. I think we can, with reasonable accuracy, label these people as oligarchs.
But what about those of us who do value the goals of justice and a measure of equality? Why aren't we making it happen? Is it because we have never given it much thought? Is it because we don't believe more democracy is possible or practical? Is it because we don't know what “more democracy” would look like?
I used to be an optimist in this matter. I believed that things would get better as people began to understand the power at their fingertips. No longer. I now believe that we will not make any significant improvements until we recognize that our constitution is a flawed document, that we can and should change it, that numerous Supreme Court decisions have been anti-democratic, that attitudes toward freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and civil rights for corporations are anti-democratic, and that a free society needs protection against abuse of power by corporatinons just as badly as it needs protection against abuse of power by the government.
I have also become skeptical as to whether any significant degree of democracy, even representative democracy, is possible at the federal level given the size and complexity of our world.
In spite of my skepticism, I believe that we can make small improvements in democracy. The single most effective thing we can all do immediately is to expect more democratic behavior from our representatives than most of them exhibit. We should expect them to actually foster more democratic procedures and become leaders in promoting greater democracy.
If you want to be a part of the movement toward a more just and equitable society, you must first enter into the big conversation about democracy. Learn to articulate what democracy means to you and how well our government measures up to your standard. Next... I don't know what comes next. I'm hoping that some of you out there in Podville will have answers that work.
Oh! And if you don't think that a more just and equitable society is a worthy goal, I'd love to hear from you too.
EARLIER STATEMENTS OF BIASES
8/05
I think the democracy is a good thing. I think it's a good thing, not just
because I like the sound of the word, but because it CAN deliver justice and
a measure of equality to all members of a society if large numbers of citizens
value those goals.
Not everybody wants justice and a measure of equality. A good many people who have done well for themselves are not eager to give up the advantages they have and are not enthusiastic about proposed changes in government procedures that would strengthen the voice of the disenfranchised.
But what about those of us who do value the goals of justice and a measure of equality? Why aren't we making it happen? Is it because we have never given it much thought? Is it because we don't believe more democracy is possible or practical? Is it because we don't know what “more democracy” would look like?
I'm an optimist. I've thought a lot about it. I think it's not only desirable but possible and very doable. And the single most effective thing we can all do immediately is to expect more democratic behavior from our representatives than most of them exhibit. We should expect them to actually foster more democratic procedures and become leaders in promoting greater democracy.
If you want to be a part of the movement toward a more just and equitable society, you must first enter into the big conversation about democracy. Learn to articulate what democracy means to you and how well our government measures up to your standard. Next... I don't know what comes next. I'm hoping that some of you out there in Podville will have answers that work.
Oh! And if you don't think that a more just and equitable society is a worthy goal, I'd love to hear from you too.
I still have doubts that a fair and equitable democracy is possible given the shear size and complexity of our country. Bloomington, Indiana, with less than 70,000 residents, has a reasonable democracy. There may be some states whose governments are reasonably democratic, certainly not Indiana.
The other factor that seems to be a roadblock to true democracy in this country is our excessively selfish moral climate. We accept greed as a healthy moral value. We have come to love competition in zero sum games - games is which there can only be one winner and all others are losers. We have come to accept absurd accumulations of wealth by a few in the face of poverty and misery of many as morally acceptable.
We cannot have democracy in organizations that are too complex to oversee, and we cannot have democracy if our moral values are selfish and corrupt.
My new focus for programs 30 and onward will be an exploration of how we might work to simplify our society and an exploration of our moral values in the context of a society that gives lip service to a love of democracy.