It's
All About the Benjamins. . .
Ask
any American what our nation stands for and you will probably hear words like
freedom, justice, equality and opportunity.
We like to believe that we are a country that always stands on the right
side of history and that we as a people base our decisions on the highest of
moral standards. We wage war, make peace
and create policies with the belief that we are in the right and that our
values and interests are beyond reproach.
We are the "Leader of the Free World", the nation that has
grown because of our "Manifest Destiny" to become the "Shining City on the Hill." This America is a place where anyone can
rise to the top, and where every individual, no matter their starting point,
has an equal chance to succeed through hard work, perseverance and
ingenuity.
In
many ways this narrative about America
does contain some truths. Our nation is
a land with many opportunities. It is a
place where we have seen people rise to the top of the ladder from very
challenging starting points. American
citizens have opportunities and enjoy a standard of living far above what many
people around the world experience. Our national
identity is built on an ideology that speaks strongly about freedom and justice
for all. Yet, there is another side to
this narrative of equality that tells a very different story.
It
is that disconnect between the ideas contained in documents like our
Constitution, Declaration of Independence and other powerful sources of thinking
and the reality of our past and present that frustrate so many of us. The very words that shape American ideology,
the idea that America
exists as a land of opportunity for all, were written at a time when a
significant majority of the population was excluded from the very things that
we value and aspire to. As we progress
through our history we see that same disconnect continue. We speak the words of freedom, justice and equality,
we even export our ideas through commerce and conflict. Yet, we continue to fall short of our ideals
within our own borders for far too many of our citizens.
Perhaps
part of our problem is the mixing of different spheres of human thought and
activity. On one hand we offer a vision
of equality that is based on rights and opportunity in terms of access to power
and an ability to freely choose the paths we take in life. We like to occupy the moral high ground and
pretend that we see success defined on a philosophical or ideological
level. American democracy, our ideals and
values, all come from some higher plane that exists above the messy and
uncomfortable reality that we all live and work in.
This
way of thinking ignores a basic reality, when we get to a true "bottom
line" Americans define success in economic terms, not philosophical or
ideological ones. We use economic
measures to identify strengths and weaknesses in our society. We use economic measures to quantify things
that really can't be measured economically.
Things like education and even the value of a human life are measured in
dollars and cents. We may want to talk
about how the rights that we value so highly come from nature or God, but when
push comes to shove, we ignore morality and put financial considerations at the
center of our decision making processes.
In the end, economics influence all other aspects of our discussions
politically, socially and morally.
This
isn't a new phenomena. From the very
beginning we saw money and the ideal of a "free market" conflict with
a sense of higher purpose. The
difference between the words "life, liberty and property" or
"life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" are significant, and the
writers of our Declaration of Independence chose pursuit of happiness over
property. Over time we may have chosen
to view the idea that happiness is equivalent to property, but they don't have
to be synonymous. Time and time again we
see the tension between the economic and the ideological, and as a nation we
have tried to reconcile the two and make them one and the same.
It
is interesting to note that one contentious claim that is often made about America is that
we are a Christian nation. Yet, when we
place such an emphasis on economics we ignore a basic tenet of Christianity and
the teachings that say we should separate economics from our core values. If we are to divide our thinking and
"render unto Caesar things that belong to Caesar, and render unto God
things that belong to God", or if we are to live like the birds and lilies
not worrying about our physical needs, then we must think carefully about
whether our morality and sense of social justice can truly be placed on an
economic playing field.
As
a society we have been grappling with the diversity of thought and the
conflicts that occur between ideologies and beliefs throughout our
history. The idea that we should have
basic freedoms of expression is a strength and a source of weakness at the same
time. We constantly grapple with the reality
that one way of thinking and one set of beliefs won't work for a nation filled
with many different spiritual and philosophical ideas. Who should have rights? What do these rights mean? How do we navigate challenging issues in an
ethical and equitable way? All of these
questions are difficult to answer in a diverse culture, and so we turn to a
more concrete way of determining the correct path to take.
Economics
is a field that is easy to rely on for answers and solutions. "It's the economy, stupid!" is a
phrase that resonates with our culture and our way of thinking. We may want to do the right thing, but we
also want to succeed, and success means "Conspicuous Consumerism" and
a well padded wallet. Just look at who
is valued in our society and who we defend in our public discourse. The successful business leader, the famous
entertainer, and the "job creators" are all given high praise, while
public servants, educators and blue-collar laborers are degraded.
Once
again, these aren't new challenges that are unique to this period of time. What makes things different in our present
state of affairs is the dangerous combination of huge inequities in wealth,
continuing struggles with inequities in opportunities and a backlash against
efforts to advance social justice causes from those in power. The ability to use financial capital to
protect and even expand one's political, social and economic influence is truly
troubling.
The ad, which recently
started in the Madison
market, is part of a campaign to counter attacks by Democrats ahead of the
mid-term elections.
madison.com|By
Lee Enterprises
The
more we rely solely on economics as a measure of personal and societal success
the farther away from the philosophical ideals that our founders espoused we
go. While we can argue about the true
motivations of the leaders of the American Rebellion (and to be sure there were
significant financial motivations for their revolt) the words that they used
are ones that provide hope for all citizens, if applied liberally and with a
sense of justice. Yet, modern Americans
are falling victim to a marketing campaign that seeks to gloss over inequities
and ignore both historical and current realities.
But this notion is completely
at odds with the data.
washingtonpost.com
63% of Americans believe 'blacks who can't get ahead are mostly
responsible for their own condition'
A small minority say
"racial discrimination is the main reason why many...
vox.com
No, single moms aren't the
problem. And neither are absentee dads.
motherjones.com
We
blame those who aren't "succeeding" without giving them respect, or
tools to succeed. In a society where
equity and opportunity are supposed to be the norm, we forget that there are
more barriers to success and achievement than simple financial ones.
The daily strain of poverty
taxes cognitive functions, akin to mentally ‘pulling an all-nighter,’ a study
finds.
In this first installment of a KPCC series, we look at new
research that...
www.scpr.org|By Annie Gilbertson
In
a capitalistic, democratic society there should be multiple, clear
opportunities for achieving success (however that is measured). Two of the most important of these pathways
are a voice in decision making, and access to training and education. It should come as no surprise that we are
seeing these areas coming under attack more and more in recent days.
Education
has long been seen as a way to improve ones social, political and economic
status. Data shows that the more
education one receives the higher one's income, the more active politically one
is, and the higher social status one has.
We have a system of public education in place that should be able to
provide equal opportunities for all citizens, yet we fail to do so for a
variety of reasons. We may want to blame
our educators or our students. We may
want to blame families and social conditions.
What we aren't hearing often enough are the real reasons behind the
struggles of our public schools and the students who attend them.
Bush's No Child Left Behind
Act and Obama's Race to the Top grant...
Alternet
The dean of Howard University's
School of Education takes a provocative look at
what urban school reform is all about. It's not about schools and kids, she
says.
Washington Post
To truly improve education in
Milwaukee, we
must start with the assumption that poor children are no less deserving of a
quality education than rich children. As such, the schools that privileged
suburban parents demand for their children should be the yardstick we use to
measure the adequacy of edu…
Economic Policy Institute
Barriers
exist even for those who are able to navigate the system and move on to higher
educational opportunities. With our
current, significant student debt issue who suffers the most, the wealthy or
the poor?
Misleading Brookings study
latest attempt to bury student debt crisis
america.aljazeera.com
Even
the foundations of democracy, the simple idea that one person equals one vote
is challenged in our modern society. In
a culture where money is speech, inequity will reign.
They want to eradicate
fundraising restrictions—even if it costs the...
newrepublic.com
President John F. Kennedy
warned emerging foreign leaders about turning...
expressmilwaukee.com
Did Scott Walker allegedly
violate campaign finance laws because they're stupid? Or because he is?
BloombergView.com
If we are ever going to
achieve the real success that our founding documents and national rhetoric
proclaim, we the people will need to provide a counter force to correct the
damage that vast wealth has done to our nation.
When talking about improving conditions and opportunities for all
citizens it shouldn't be an us vs. them situation. We all need to rally together to work for
what is best for our nation as a whole, not for any particular individual. As we approach the 4th of July weekend we
need to remember the promises that were made in 1776 still hold true today, and
the dangers of that time period are just as real now as well.
Memo: From Nick HanauerTo: My
Fellow ZillionairesYou probably don’t know me, but like you I am one of those
.01%ers, a proud and unapologetic capitalist. I have founded, co-founded and
funded more than 30 companies...
The
Good, The Bad and
The
Ugly. . .
The Good . . . We should never forget that we have a voice and shouldn't be afraid or
hesitant to use it.
Reports of email's death in
advocacy have been greatly exaggerated....
Connectivity
The results are in: the Madison schools food drive collected an
amazing 5,011 pounds of food and $40! In all, we raised 4,296 meals (USDA
equation: 1.2 lbs = 1 meal) for the families and individuals served by Second
Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin.
We need to celebrate every
victory and build off of our successes.
Valentina (Val) Flores, a
career educator, won a surprising and decisive victory for a seat on the state
board of education in Colorado.
Flores won by a margin of 59-41, beating a
candidate who was...
Diane Ravitch's blog
The Bad . . . We often look attribute more significance to historical events (like
the Great Depression), however, it is important to recognize the significance
of current events. The recession that we
are currently recovering from is a current event that will get more recognition
for its severity in the future. The
recession was obviously felt economically, but also had social and political
ramifications. Scott Walker and many
other conservatives owe their jobs to the economic struggles of so many people,
and are still working to profit from them.
The U.S. in May
finally recovered all the jobs lost in the recession, but most states still are
short of...
blogs.wsj.com|By
Ben Leubsdorf
The Ugly . . . Voter fraud does exist!!
Interestingly enough it just happens to have been committed by a
Republican voting for Walker,
and wouldn't have been prevented by our voter ID laws.
Robert D. Monroe, 50, used
addresses in Shorewood, Milwaukee and Indiana, according to
the complaint, and cast some votes in the names of his son and his girlfriend’s
son.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | By Bruce
Vielmetti
Maybe the real reason Scott
Walker and Reince Preibus think their state...
Salon
As we get closer to the
election we need to make sure that the public understands the reality of our
financial situation here in Wisconsin.
A Wisconsin Taxpayers
Alliance report says state is spending more than...
host.madison.com|By Lee Enterprises
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