Whose Vision are we Pursuing?

I look to leaders who can sketch a picture of the society they're working toward. The elder George Bush called this "the vision thing." Unfortunately what our current leaders want to create is not a newer and better society. Wanting to change society but not having new ideas, they want to change it back to what it was a hundred years ago, described as Rolling Back the 20th Century. This is not a new vision for the future of our society but rather a "sore loser" approach to reform battles we thought were over many decades ago. Sidney Blumenthal in his book The Clinton Wars describes George Bush as an extreme conservative, a believer in the theory of the "constitution in exile" with the true Constitution having been eclipsed during the FDR era. Peter Morgan --editor of the British tabloid The Daily Mirror-- pithily summarizes the situation: "We in Europe like John Wayne, we liked him in cowboy films. We don't like him running the world."

Federal vs. State Economy During a Downturn

Typically during an economic downturn the federal government (which can run deficits, after all it prints money) bails out the states (which are not allowed to run deficits). This time though the federal government is refusing to bail out the states, forcing the states to make deep cuts in social service programs in attempts to balance their budgets. Thus the federal government's over-emphasis on "lower taxes" is dismantling the social safety net we're used to having under us.

Price vs. Value

As consumers we look for the best value. But as value is somewhat difficult to quantify, we tend to look for the lowest price because it's simpler. Suppose you take advantage of an advertisement of the lowest price on a particular item. Is the gasoline you expended driving to that store to purchase it worth it? Do you recognize the sales clerk as someone you've seen somewhere else? Would you consent to work there? Can your child get a summer job there? Do the taxes you pay there go back into your own community, perhaps to help pay for schools? Looking only at low price can blind us to other components of value.

Likewise we tend to look for lower taxes rather than value for our tax dollars. It's easy to support politicians who promise simply lower taxes rather than good value. Is the street in front of your house paved, and is it cleared of snow in the winter? Do you know someone whose unemployment benefits have run out? Are the schools in your community strapped? Do you enjoy hiking in wilderness areas or public forests or parks? Do you know someone who has a lot of trouble getting help with their disabled child? If so, there are good ways to expend your tax dollars. Looking only at low taxes can blind us to other components of value.

People and Our Biological Environment

People are part of the biological environment. I much prefer figuring out how we can "fit in" rather than viewing natural resources as something to be dominated and exploited. I'm disturbed by the book Made In Texas: George W. Bush and the Southern Takeover of American Politics by Michael Lind, which describes an over-individualistic antagonistic approach to nature. In fact it describes the ethos of west Texas as including not just environmental exploitation but also jingoistic militarism and a fundamentalist evangelicalism. Sounds familiar...

European and American Values

In his book The End of the American Era (although the book focusses on foreign policy), Charles Kupchan describes a contrast of values between the US and Europe, which are not as similar as the phrase "the west" may suggest. His description of typical European views on American values resonates with me:

Despite continuing deregulation across Europe, America's laissez-faire capitalism contrasts sharply with Europe's more state-centered economy. While Americans decry the constraints on growth stemming from the European model, Europeans look askance at America's income inequalities, its consumerism, and its willingness to sacrifice social capital for material gain. The two have also parted company on matters of statecraft. Americans see the EU's firm commitment to multilateral institutions and the rule of international law as naïve, self-righteous, and a product of its military weakness, while Europeans see America's reliance on the use of force as simplistic, self-serving, and a product of its excessive power. Europeans still share a historical affinity for the United States, but they also feel estranged from a society wedded to gun ownership, capital punishment, and gas-guzzling cars.

USA Had More Than One "Founding Event"

This country progressed so much in the twentieth century that it would probably not be recognized by its founders, or even its earlier presidents. We have had several "founding events" (for example our Civil War); only two of the faces on Mount Rushmore are from the 1776 generation. At the end of the FDR era the USA had become a different country. Good thing, because the original founders never imagined either the industrial revolution or a predominately urban population.

But our constitution --and our mythology-- was never updated, so there's a clash between our "sacred documents" and the real USA we live in. The changes were legitimated by novel (some would say tortured) interpretations of various parts of our constitution, particularly the "interstate commerce clause." And opposition coalesced around the phrase "states rights." Our school students focus so much on "1776" that they often don't learn much about the other founding events. And what they do learn differs from classroom to classroom much more than coverage of our separation from Britain, as it has never been mythologized. So when politicians propose to "return the country to the founders' intentions," the logic of their case is prima facie reasonable, and opponents have no event they can all rally around.

Returning to "Olden Times"

To slavishly return to what the founding fathers intended would roll back a couple centuries of progress and flirt with making us servants to museum pieces. Besides, since the founding fathers are not here to speak for themselves, pronouncements of what they'd think are just educated guesses. And I don't want to give someone else permission to authoritatively make those guesses if their guesses will dramatically affect my own life. Whenever the founding fathers are used as a justification for a political action, I suspiciously prick up my ears. For the same reasons I don't want to go back to the era when William McKinley was president.

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