Two Parties

I’m a two-party guy.  That does not mean I have a full social agenda tonight.  I’m talking about politics and decision-making.  Yes, I am a progressive Democrat, but I absolutely do not want Democrats to be the only party.  I do not want the Republicans to be the only party either. 

H. L. Mencken wrote that for every complex human problem, there is a solution that is neat, simple and wrong.  Smart man.

 

As a species, we are facing the greatest challenges ever.  Can we survive on our home planet or have we done so much damage our climate and atmosphere are irreparable?  How many humans can our planet support?  How do we resolve conflicts that are driven by deeply held belief systems that are not subject to logic and science?  Now that 99% of all life that has ever existed on this planet is extinct, how shall we ensure that we do not follow that same path?  How do we get to a position of collaboration rather than competition with others of our kind?  How do we reconcile the wealth of the 1% with the extreme poverty of the 36% who are daily on the verge of death?  Shall barriers between humans grow stronger or should we be breaking down barriers? 

We so want someone to just step up and say “Here are the answers.”  But no one person can do that, and if they do we know upfront they are wrong.  We cannot solve human mobility across national boundaries by building walls.  We cannot solve our climate crisis by saying there is nothing to worry about and life should go on as usual.  We cannot solve the conflict between religious groups by government institution and support of one religious belief and casting other belief systems as evil.  We cannot solve the conflict between the haves and the have nots by writing off the have nots and ensuring the continuation of the haves.  We cannot solve the tension between members of our species based on DNA and skin pigment by suppressing those groups we deem somehow unworthy.  We cannot mandate the reduction in human rights and freedom and expect positive outcomes, especially if the reduction in freedom is the result of a religious belief.  Each of those paths has been tried and each has failed again and again, and yet we try again and again.

Democrats do not have a patent on the best answers to these challenges.  Nor do the Republicans.  I am a Democrat because I have looked at the proposed solutions of each party and I perceive that the proposed Democrat solutions are much more likely to yield a long-term resolution of the problems and I perceive that the Republican solutions appear to protect the status quo.  And I believe the status quo is killing us.  But, I truly believe the more minds that are brought to a problem increases the likelihood of problem solution.  For our survival we must, we absolutely must gather at the same table and discuss the issues.  We will disagree.  We will argue.  But solutions generated by open contribution and respectful debate are much more likely to ensure our survival than petty power politics.

Democracy is hard.  We must defend the right of someone to articulate what we absolutely oppose and yet be willing to seek truth in what they say.  We must confront the misuse of power for selfish ends.  We must view our entire planet, not our little square on the planet.  We must see each other, not just those who look like us and think like us.  We must plan for our grandchildren and great-grandchildren and on and on, not plan for the next quarterly report and this year’s contribution to our total wealth.  We must regain integrity.  We must pursue truth, embrace it no matter how painful, and act on fact. 

If it turns out that as a species we are incapable of the pursuit of such a noble mission then archeologists of another species will make that note on our tombstones.  The pursuit of such a mission in this nation will require two political parties both of whom are more interested in the mission than sustaining temporary majorities.  No one will care if a party has the majority and the decisions they make doom us.

Birds of a feather may flock together, but I deeply hope we are smarter than birds.  One party could foster tyranny.  Multiple parties would result in chaos and divisiveness.  Two parties, respectful of each other, can do it.  Have done it.  But we must confront those who are building walls in the petty game of politics and say to them our great-grandchildren mean more than your re-election.  We must care more about the world and America’s role in the world than we do about our own temporal power.  Just ask Genghis Kahn, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Hitler, etc. how long power lasts.  It is a false goal.  

Our mission must be to save the planet, pursue equality and equity, pursue human rights, save each other, and thereby save ourselves.