Politics

Van Jones, who I have always admired, has an organization that I think is unfortunately named "Rebuild the Dream." And the language of this movement as it were, is around "saving," "rebuilding," and "protecting" the American Dream. 

So what is this "Dream" that should be saved, rebuilt, protected? I think for different people it means different things. For some it means the ability to reinvent oneself, and find a way to success or wealth. For others, and I imagine Van is in this category, it means that people get jobs with living wages, everyone can afford a nice house, and a nice car, and some sort of financial security. That is admirable, but it's not enough.

The truth of the American Dream, I think, has always been much darker than it's proponents admit, or perhaps even imagined. 

The American Dream started, of course with Manifest Destiny. The idea that this continent was the American continent. That we were destined to stretch from the East to the Pacific Ocean. And we all know who suffered in that. Between the Native Americans whose land was stolen, and the African slaves, indentured servants and exploited workers from around the world, without whose labor would have made this impossible, many people suffered in service to this first part of the American Dream.

After World War II, long after the Destiny had been fulfilled, the next phase of this American Dream was built on the decomposed remains of plants that lived millions of years ago. There were fossil fuels, and plenty of them, and we built our ideal of the future based upon the assumptions that not only would this resource be with us always, but it also would have no deleterious effect on our environment. We now know that neither of these assumptions is true. 

And there never really was a moment when the  American Dream actually was possible for most Americans. From 1945 through around 1968, this American Dream was available primarily to white men. Women were expected to stay home and take care of the house and kids. It was much more difficult for people of color, because of law or custom, to access this dream:  from owning homes in many areas, getting well-paying jobs, or getting a good education. 

Then, just as both women and people of color started to get fuller access, the American Dream started to fade, starting with Ronald Reagon, in 1980. Union membership, and the collective bargaining power that went with that, began to drop. Real wages stagnated, and it took two earners to retain the same standard of living that had been possible for one, previously. 

And now, the American Dream is being a rat on a treadmill. Most people work more than full time, most in jobs they don't find especially meaningful, spending hours of time every day in a steel box on the road just so they can live somewhere that's quieter, and "safer." When we are depressed (as if this kind of life wouldn't make anyone depressed) or anxious (as if the state of the world wouldn't make anyone anxious) we are given some pills to make us feel better. People are trapped in jobs becuase they can't get health insurance otherwise. They can't follow their dreams because their house payment is too large.

And this, too, is falling apart. Are any of these this American Dream are we supposed to really be trying to rebuild? 

It's time to reimagine the American Dream, not rebuild it. Reimagine our country as a place that truly accepts, celebrates and gives equal access to all of its residents, no matter the race, orgin, ability, faith tradition, sexuality, gender, family type or relationship status. Reimagine sustainable communities, and sustainable food production and distribution. Reimagine transportation that doesn't depend on fossil fuels. Reimagine work, where people can do what is truly meaningful to them instead of creating wealth for others, and work less because we really don't need half of the stuff we produce. Reminagine education, where people have a truly broad education, and aren't just being eductated so they can be a cog in some wheel. Reimagine how we live - living more collectively, more interdependently.  

Saving, protecting or rebuilding the old American Dream in a world without cheap fossil fuels, and without continuing to wreak havoc on our environment is impossible. Sadly, our choice is between reimagining, or giving it all up entirely.

Dr. George Tiller from Wichita Kansas, a physician who performed legal late-term abortions, often when a woman's life or health was at risk, was shot and killed in church this morning. This is the most recent in a very long history of attacks and murders of physicians who perform abortions. I have read varied comments on varied blogs today where people have been suggesting that this was a good thing.

I've been thinking a lot about Proposition 8 - both before the election, and after it. In truth I have mixed feelings about the whole gay marriage thing (for example, how it happened that lesbians went from thinking it was an institution of patriarchy to something we wanted,) but that's a different post for a different time. I'm saddened, of course, that a lot of people in California voted to add a discriminatory amendment to the consitution.

There is a conference happening now (appropriate to the date, I guess) sponsored by Evangelicals for Human Rights: "A National Summit on Torture: religious faith, torture, and our national soul". Accompanying that conference was a poll (PDF) of southern evangelicals on torture. The findings are deeply disturbing.

The brou-ha-ha around Jesse Jackson's comments about Obama, and how he

I was having fun for a while. Interesting crop of candidates on the Democratic side for once, more than one that I really liked. It looked like there was going to be an interesting contest, one that would be about issues, and not flinging daggers back and forth. I'm not having fun anymore. Hillary Clinton is playing dirty. She is more interested in being President than in rising above the fray, and being honest.

Tuesday is SuperDuper Tuesday, where a bunch of states vote in primaries. One of those states is my own, Massachusetts. For a while, I was, ironically, supporting Edwards. Mostly because I really, really don't like Hillary, and I felt like Obama is young, could use more seasoning before being president, and Edwards would have made a great president. (Actually, my dream ticket was Edwards/Obama - 16 years of bliss.) Anyway, now that Edwards has dropped out, I'm going to support Obama wholeheartedly. One thing, though.

It's interesting to think about the press, and the bias the press has, especially in this time. What the press says, and how it says it, is pretty darned important - it's the way that most people get their information about politics, and the presidential campaigns. I've been thinking some about the Obama/Huckabee victories in Iowa, and what people are saying about it. In particular, I've been interested in the whole issue of how faith is playing out - Obama's faith, Huckabee's faith, and the faith of voters.

The results from Iowa are in: Obama wins big, as does Huckabee. Edwards comes in second among dems. Hillary Clinton does really badly. I'm happy. I'm not a Clinton fan, honestly (she's too hawkish, too corporate-friendly.) And, as far as I am concerned, Mike Huckabee is probably the republican to beat. Hat tip to Cranky/Happy Cindy for what coverage to follow.

• Ron Paul is a Republican candidate I almost can support. Almost, but, utlimately, not. He's right on so many issues, like getting out of the empire business entirely, and on limiting the government's ability to spy on us. But he's anti-choice, seems like he wants to eliminate the social safety net, and has some other stands that I have a hard time with. There is so much to like ... and so much to dislike. Sigh.
• Pat Robertson endorsed Rudi Guliani. Huh?