The goal, as farfetched as it may seem, is to put the ball back into the hands of the people where it rightfully belongs.
~99
While much of our discourse continues to focus on the processes by which politicians achieve and exercise powerful positions, other, deeper questions remain: Do we want to continue to concentrate power in this way? Will we make progress through such political processes, or will we make progress by changing the underlying social/political/economic structures?
The impulses to exercise power over others and to genuflect to authority are certainly embedded deep in our psyche and our history. We see the same patterns in many animal species, for whom rigid dominance hierarchies constitute key aspects of their social lives. But we appear unique in our ability to consciously analyze and remake the methods by which we organize ourselves. Our electoral system reflects some measure of such innovation. Instead of having rulers determined by conquest and heredity, we now vote for "representatives." This has been called a system of "weak democracy," though it could as accurately be labeled "weak authoritarianism." It still involves an extreme concentration of power, but it encourages wide participation in the process of selecting some of the hands in which power resides. Let's now speak of moving from "weak democracy" to "strong democracy." Such an immense shift will inevitably be somewhat daunting to contemplate. But let's dare to contemplate it. We're not talking about discontinuing any of the many systems that protect us or serve our well-being. We're offering a serious plan specifically for moving beyond rigid dominance hierarchies and related entrenched, counterproductive systems. It's time for us to take our next step, as a planet. There's too much promise, too much potential, too many utopian possibilities, for us to keep putting our energies into controlling and fighting each other. The campaign of storied Portland activist 99 isn't about claiming the Oval Office or the prerogatives associated with it; he'll only do so to the extent necessary to ensure a smooth transition as we put the new systems in place. His campaign reflects a genuine, optimistic anticipation of the beginning of a new era of civilization. By supporting his campaign, we're supporting a kind of formal signal of this beginning. However long it ultimately takes for us to be ready to shift the paradigm, this campaign can serve as a vehicle for advancing our discourse toward such a point. By embracing afresh each other's worth and each other's freedom, we believe we can unlock untold progress, happiness, and greatness. Together - no longer divided and stratified - we can accomplish wonderful things. |