Flawed
Economics,
Flawed Politics. . .
We continue to be told
that conservative fiscal policies are the best way to promote a healthy
economy. Yet, the people telling us that
are the ones who profit from the policies that are enacted. The illusion that the wealthiest of Americans
need protections while the poorest simply need to work harder is harmful to our
nation socially, economically and politically.
Conservative financial policies are set up to do one thing, preserve the
status quo that allows the wealthy to maintain their elite status.
Our nation is founded on
the principles that all of us are equal and are entitled to equal
opportunity. While these ideals have
been unequally promoted over the years, the message is one that we should
strive to achieve. Governmental
protections, legislation and regulation are some of the major driving forces in
promoting opportunity for all. This may
scare some people who feel that government is incompetent and invasive, but the
reality is that without a strong governmental influence we see increased
segregation and stratification in all aspects of our lives. Despite conservative claims to the contrary,
most of our major positive steps towards equality have come through government
interventions.
We have had an ongoing
conflict in our nation to find the proper balance between local governmental
control and a stronger national government.
At times we have leaned in both directions and have seen the benefits
and drawbacks of having one level of government be dominant. One of the major drawbacks in centralizing
power is that it allows a small number of people to dictate their ideas on the
majority. The Tea Party and extreme
conservative political leadership are a great example of this phenomena in America.
The current drive to cut
government, eliminate safety nets and ease regulation of business are not going
to improve conditions for most of us.
Here in Wisconsin,
where we "enjoy" a climate dominated by conservative policies, this
is becoming crystal clear.
Wisconsinites are gearing
up for another bitter gubernatorial campaign in 2014. During this political contest we will hear
how positive and powerful the conservative ideology claims to be. We can only hope that whoever runs in
opposition to Governor Walker is able to be equally forceful in promoting a
different way of governing. This message
must be truthful, forceful and articulated clearly. The numbers and reality demonstrate that we
are currently on the wrong path, but it is up to progressives and Democrats to
make the case to the majority of the people.
As this article states, it
is vital that the people show up in 2014.
If we don't we will see another 4 years of failed policies and
controversy. It is interesting to hear
Senator Ron Johnson essentially admit that he was elected by fewer people than
Senator Baldwin was. While he may claim
that the additional 800,000 voters who cast ballots in the election that gave Baldwin her seat were ignorant, that's a pretty bold, and
insulting assumption to make.
Flawed
Education Policies
Economics isn't the only
place where we see a struggle between competing ideologies. The topics may be different, but the themes
are the same. It boils down to a
continuing push by those with wealth and power to consolidate, maintain and
expand their supremacy.
School
"reformers" use the language of freedom and choice. They point to statistics that demonstrate the
failures of public education. They blame
educators, and especially educator's unions.
Unions that, while certainly not perfect, often are the only real defense
against the implementation of destructive "reforms".
Yet, they offer little in
the way of reforms that will actually help students who are not succeeding.
The struggle is very real,
and its outcome is extremely significant for all of us. How all of our children are educated should
matter to everyone. While we do need
innovative and creative new educational methods to reach today's students, we
should be listening to the trained professionals who work IN our schools. Unfortunately, we seem committed to trying
"reforms" proposed from so called experts who are far to often
extremely distant from actual classrooms.
Social
Justice…
As we continue the
struggle to promote positive resolutions to our societal challenges and to
protect key elements of our society like public schools and safety nets we
can't allow our society to simply return to the conditions that existed
previously. Our goals in the current
conflicts must be to not only hold on to what we have, but to build a stronger future
for all citizens.
We have engaged in an
Uprising that has been very active since 2011.
An uprising that has exposed some unpleasant and ugly truths about our
society. Things that we wanted to
believe had been "cured" still exist and need to be addressed. If we are going to force our schools to be
"Data Driven" then we should also make sure that we hold all aspects
of our society to the same standards.
However, we can do better than those who force educators to view
students as "data". We can
strive to understand the individuals behind the numbers and the history that
has created the current realities that our fellow citizens face.
America in 2013 is a place of tremendous potential, but we
need to work to make sure that we are moving towards achieving that
potential. It is too early to talk about
a legacy, but instead should think of these ideals as goals we are currently
working to achieve.
"So, the Occupy
Wall Street movement, which many dismissed as the wails of the young and
disaffected without clear objectives, clear leaders or a clear political
agenda, may, in the end, have a rather clear legacy: ingraining in the national
conscience the idea that our extreme levels of inequality are politically
untenable and morally unacceptable, and that eventually the 99 percent will
demand better."
There will be significant
pushback from those interested in maintaining power and the status quo. This is true around the world, around the U.S. and here in Wisconsin.
The conflicts of 2013 are
not new conflicts. They are variations
on themes that have been ongoing throughout our history. Just like the conflicts are recurring, so too
are the solutions that pull people up.
One of the most important of these potential solutions is the effort to
find common ground between groups and to build relationships that will unite
people, not divide them.
Too often, we see groups
and individuals who share common interests engaging in conflict while others
profit from the divisions. Examples of
this are easy to find. One clear example
comes from a book about the Great Migration of African-Americans from the South
to Northern cities by Isabel Wilkerson (The Warmth of Other Suns). As the migrants arrived in Northern cities
they were met with hostility and discrimination, yet, as Wilkerson states,
"They were essentially the same people except for the color of their skin,
and many of them arrived into these anonymous receiving stations at around the
same time, one set against the other and unable to see the commonality of their
mutual plight. Thus these violent
clashes bore the futility of Greek tragedy."
If we are to achieve
success in our struggles, we need to avoid becoming another legacy of
tragedy. We must learn from our
history. We must put aside some of the
differences that only serve to perpetuate conflict that lead to continued
strife, and we must work together to build a better future based on the
founding principles of our nation.
