Common Ground

We live in terror because persuasion is no longer possible…because we live in a world of abstractions, of bureaus and machines, of absolute ideas and messianism without nuance. We suffocate among people who believe they are absolutely right, whether in their machines or their ideas. And for those who can only live in an atmosphere of dialogue and the fellowship of man, this silence is the end of the world.
- Albert Camus

I was the most patriotic little kid you can imagine. Born in 1964 on Thomas Jefferson’s birthday (April 13th,) I came of age to the fifes and drums and fireworks of the Bicentennial celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. I begged my parents for a red-white-and-blue Free Spirit commemorative bicycle (which I got – thanks folks!) and when the Freedom Train exhibit came to town, my family stood in the long line to see the artifacts of the birth of our country. The Vietnam War and the lying president were aberrations – America was fundamentally a great country to be proud of.

My parents also raised us as good Democrats. If our government can, through taxation, make life easier for the less fortunate, it should. Duh. As I understood it, Republicans were cold-hearted hawks who fought for the interests of the privileged and wanted to leave the “little people” to fend for themselves in a brutal world. I never understood why anyone would be a Republican, and I avoided the company of these people. Their ideology was to be tolerated, but it was basically “wrong.”

I won’t go into the saga of the disillusionment and apathy that overtook my spirit during the Reagan era. Suffice to say, since the 2004 election I am now a recovering participant in American democracy.

Last week I attended the RESULTS international conference in Washington DC. RESULTS is a group that seeks to end hunger and the worst aspects of poverty domestically and globally, while empowering everyday citizens to participate in our own government through letter-writing, calling, and actually meeting with legislators. So the grand finale of the conference was all of us walking over to the congressional office buildings and lobbying our senators and representatives on upcoming legislation. After, of course, a little singing in the banquet room!

Our Arizona group had appointments with aides of both senators and seven representatives, including face-to-face meetings with Reps. Raul Grijalva and Jim Kolbe. We also met briefly with Rep. Rick Renzi after talking specifics with his LD. Our focus was global poverty issues – upcoming legislation on the funding and structuring of programs to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, Basic Education and the elimination of school fees, microcredit, Assistance for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, the Global Fund, and UNICEF.

Of course, we went into this knowing full well that “foreign aid” is not a favorite subject with our Republican legislators. We also went in with the conviction that global epidemics combined with huge populations of desperate, uneducated people in the poorer countries constitute a major security risk, with terrorist-training groups like Madrassas offering free food and education while the U.S. continues to reluctantly shell out a pittance relative to our wealth. We know that to halt these global crises we need a lot more than the approximately 2 billion dollars currently proposed, but we offered clear, intelligent plans for the spending of this money as an investment – a little spent now on prevention will avoid major, expensive crises later on. So we had some good talking points, but were still braced for adversity and debate.

What surprised me most about our meetings was the receptivity of almost everyone we talked to. It was similar to the feeling I had the first time I canvassed door-to-door – people are, for the most part, nice. We want to do the right thing. We want to cooperate.

(Yeah, you can call me a ridiculous optimist. I prefer to reclaim the word “realist.” No, not exactly the “Realist” of international relations theory. If you’d like to know why, or need a little push in the same direction, check out my blog “Optimism and Realism.” If we’re already on the same page about human nature, read on…)

I have been around the block enough to have some instinct as to when someone is lying to my face. And I felt that from no one in these congressional offices. The ones who disagreed strongly with us were at least clear in their hesitancy or their squirming, or at most told us outright that our requests had little chance of their boss’s support. And these were only a few. I felt like we really reached some common ground with most. Basically, we had a great time! Most of the RESULTS groups, when we checked in after our first day of lobbying, agreed that this year’s response was much better than last year’s. Now we’ll see when we do our follow-up calls how much our members of Congress and their aides walk their talk. I, of course, have high hopes.

I guess what I’m getting at here is the heart of American democracy. Bear with me.
In the offices of these Republicans, I met a wide range of acceptance, ideology, and willingness to cooperate. I found the aides exceptionally bright, well-informed, and inquisitive. Surprisingly, in at least one office we found utter disgust with the current Republican leadership’s power brokering. On further reflection of my experience, I realized that labeling the offenses of our current administration and the forces threatening our democracy under the blanket term of Republicanism is really unfair. Yes, I believe a criminal element in our government has been working within that party. But there is plenty I can blame my own party for, too. What I’m seeing is that there is a split happening in our country, and it’s not between the Democrats and the Republicans, or even the liberals and conservatives (regardless of the divisive language being spoon-fed to us by the media.) This split is between the Americans and the fascists. And the tool that fascism is using to divide us against ourselves is our own narrow-mindedness.

OK, I’m not saying we Democrats need to get all lovey-dovey with the Republicans. But we need to step back a minute from all the rage we’re feeling and look at a few things…

The United States was founded on the principal that we can disagree with each other. American democracy was engineered to be a workable system within our ideological differences. For over two hundred years liberals and conservatives have been arguing, pulling their hair out, storming out of debates, and then going back in and working things out. Somehow, for all these years our leaders have managed to hold to the rule of law and put the preservation of our democracy above their differences. It’s really like a successful marriage. So are we going to get a divorce?

My personal ideology can be labeled very liberal, though I also have some conservative beliefs (fiscal responsibility, less bureaucracy, etc.) and prefer to call myself a progressive these days. I will continue pushing for legislation that matches my ideals against any counterbalancing ideology. But I will not lie, steal, dishonor or disrespect my fellow human beings, or try to change the laws of this republic to throw off the balance of power. And I will look for the ways in which I’m closing my mind to other people’s point of view. America invites us to “be all that we can be” in this way, you know; democracy works better if we work on ourselves. We need some nuance in our thinking. Thomas Jefferson, reviewing the newly created U.S. Constitution, said that it would guarantee the American people exactly the government we deserve. What kind of government do we deserve? What are we putting into it?

I don’t think I’m being too much of a “radical” to say that a very narrow ideology is trying to take over our government right now. Some clever and unprincipled men have found the cracks in our Constitution and our system and are prying with all their might. They are co-opting the language of some of our deepest-held beliefs: eroding civil liberties and free speech in the name of “freedom,” angering the international community in the name of “security,” calling hateful, exclusionary behavior “Christian,” waving the banner of “Support Our Troops” while ignoring the safety and medical needs of those same troops and veterans… George Orwell is doing the Lindy Hop in his grave...

So I really believe we are being called on, all of us, to defend our country. Not from outside forces, but from an enemy within. And I say it’s not just the little band of neo-cons in the Republican leadership that poses the biggest threat. Or even the multinational corporations. It’s our own fear. We need to stand up for what we believe in, and support each other to do the same. There are people of all parties in Congress who are committed to working long hours serving the higher good, and many are walking on eggshells to keep their positions within a hostile environment. Attacking them or writing them off doesn’t help anyone. We need dialogue, with honesty, respect and integrity. We need to be face to face as much as possible. We need to be vigilant.

A few months ago I found myself rooting for India as the next world power. They at least had the influence of Mohandas K. Gandhi in Nehru’s early native democracy. I was so disillusioned with what the United States has done with its power. But I have to say that meeting with our legislators in a serious and focused way has given me a new jolt of patriotism. I really feel like we can make this work – but we’ve got to hustle. I’ve heard it said that children are naturally patriotic; as adults we learn to mistrust, to withhold, to be cynical. I’ve also been told that someone like me is a sitting duck in Washington DC. I now think that DC needs people like me. Our democracy’s built-in safeguards against special interest and corruption have been breached, and we need a huge dose of childlike honesty and trust right now.

In closing I would just like to thank the amazing people of RESULTS. Please visit the website www.results.org - it’s a great way to get involved in our government and be part of our evolution toward a world without hunger and devastating poverty. What a fabulous idea, huh? And I would like to thank all of the public servants who work so hard to keep James Madison and the gang’s crazy idea working. And a special shout out to Rep. Rick Renzi (R, AZ) and his staff – you guys rock.

This just in…
The Senate just approved the extra $100 million to the Global Fund we requested. And they thanked citizen lobbyist groups for helping their decision. How cool is that?

Optimism or Realism

OK. I’ll admit I’m an optimist. It’s as natural as breathing to me. I’ll find something positive in any situation or person. I’m not blind to hatred, fear, injustice, and all of the scary things that are going on in the world. From a certain point of view, you could say I almost have an unnatural tendency these days towards looking at these things. Sometimes concerned friends tell me I should go on a “news fast” for my own good. But it seems like the more I look at the ugly stuff, the more hopeful I get. Because I know we can overcome it.
I wore a veil of cynicism for most of my life. Maybe “suit of armor” is a more appropriate metaphor, though a little cheesy. Like most grownups, it’s taken me many years of inner work to learn to trust and let down my tough exterior, and I’m not nearly done yet. And I believe it’s the innocence and optimism at the very core of my being that has given me the strength to push through the layers of cynicism covering my personality. Certainly the inspiration didn’t come from my culture – cynical humor is always guaranteed to get a laugh – watch any sitcom on TV. OK now stop - it’s not good for you!
And I would propose that this core of optimism is at the core of every one of us. In whatever individual ways, we throw up protective barriers around us to protect ourselves from the harshness of the world. But I don’t want to define your reality for you. If you feel you’re a pessimist to the core, so be it. In my eyes, though, you are as young and hopeful and innocent inside as the day you were born.
In fact, the word “optimist” is a bit of a stretch for me. I prefer “realist.” This layer of callousness we wear on the outside is a construct. We teach ourselves to be violent, self-serving, and pessimistic. There are studies that show this - soldiers have to be taught to kill. Really, we are caring, generous and cooperative at our core.