Resurrection

A Sunday school teacher starts to tell the Easter story. He asks the group of children ranging from six to eight, " Do you know what the Resurrection is?"

Little Tommy perks up. "If you have a resurrection lasting more than four hours you should see your doctor."

....pauses for eyerolls....

I'm resurrecting this blog because the revolution hasn't arrived. I thought we were getting close when we elected President Obama, but the evil ones still abide in the darkened souls of the conservatives.

When I first started discussing politics in this forum I really treated it as a diary of my thoughts. Sometimes I was wrong, sometimes I had moments of lucidity. 

What I want is to foment change. 

A manifesto isn't just a cool allusion to the idea of revolution, it is a statement of beliefs. I've covered this ground a couple of times, but let's hit it again. 

I believe the United States was constituted as self governing society under the Constitution of the United States. This means there is no a ruling elite. When the constitution says 'We the People' it means us. 

You and me, sweetheart. 

So, when you tell me that 'Big Government' is the problem, I say "Whose problem?" 

Government of the people and for the people as Lincoln aptly put it so many years ago. 

The problem with our government is twofold. One: The people don't participate in the governing process. Out of 221 million eligible voters 81.6 million showed up to exercise their franchise. Everyone who didn't vote because they were disillusioned by the overwhelming campaign noise doubled the effect of everyone who did vote, at least for the winner.

And the winners of the 2014 midterms were all funded by very wealthy corporate interests who want to control the destiny of our country.

Which brings me to the second point: Corporate sponsorship might be great for NASCAR but it is wrong for the people's representatives. If it takes enormous sums of money to coerce enough people to vote for you then you might be beholding to your sugar Daddy. I'm sure he thinks so.

So we have a corporately funded government and people don't vote, but they complain or at least listen to the professional whiners who do complain, that the government is too big and too inefficient. These people must suffer from a level of cognitive dissonance that would make a normal person stick their fingers in their ears and run out of the room yelling 'Na Na Na Na...'

Here's a point about the idea of government as business. Businesses run efficiently when there is a strong leadership with a fixed agenda. If they were a government they would be compared to a dictatorship, or at best a monarchy. A business can't run well as a democracy. It would be crazy. 

Trying to make our government fit the business model is dangerous to our democracy. So if you don't like the way government is going, don't vote for any corporately funded candidate. This pretty much eliminates both the Republicans and the Democrats, though I'd prefer a left leaning sell-out than a hard core, goose stepping tea party Republican.

Selecting our government is like shopping for laundry detergent. You have to shut out all the flashy advertising and bright colors to locate the best brand. When you shut out all the noise, who has a plan and is that plan in line with your core values.

The manifesto is a way to articulate our core values. What we believe in as a country. What I personally have learned on this journey. I'm open to suggestions and comments. You can share me to your friends, to fellow travelers and to the opposition, I don't care. I want a conversation to break out instead of the fist fights. We need to understand each other and care for each other. 

Just what Jesus said. 

The Manifesto (version 2)

I'm not sure I've heard an intelligent and unbiased analysis of what conservative OR liberal values are. I know what my values are, and they appear to match most of the people I live and work with. 

I believe we should be allowed the opportunity to succeed (or fail) on our own merits. 

I believe bullies should be punished for bullying whether they are individuals or organizations or corporations or governments. 

I believe religion is not the business of the state and the state is not the business of religion. 

I believe the right to free speech is the cornerstone of democracy and that media reporting news is obligated to report the truth. Opinion on the other hand is universally individual. 

I believe science is the pursuit of the knowledge of how God did it. If you don't believe in God, then ignore the last clause of my statement and move on. 

I believe in your right to believe in what you want to as long as you don't cause harm to me and mine, or others for that matter. 

I believe if you carry a gun you must be ready to kill someone. This isn't a bad thing but don't tell me you aren't ready to kill, because then you're a liar or a fool. 

I believe in truth and facts. Lies don't solve problems. If you can't prove it with facts then its an opinion. Truth at least lets you see where you are. 

I believe the role of government is to provide a shield, formed by the collective will, against the bullies of the world. Since the major effect of bullying (outside of highschool) is economic this means government has a place in protecting the individual from economic bullying. 

I believe that the government is a social contract that exist at the will of the governed. It doesn't exist for any other purpose and is subject to change at the will of the people. All parts of the government are subordinate to the collective will of the people.  


I believe we make our own reality. What we believe to be is. If we collectively do not believe we control this country, it's government and its economic direction then we won't. But if we choose to we will. Look for the truth. Believe facts. Question opinions that haven't got a basis in truth. This country is an idealistic experiment. The only way to make it work is to have ideals.