Blessings of Liberty - Part 2

Yup, that's me to the left. Aside from mysteries, I've written and perform a one-man play based on Ben Franklin. It's called (drum roll please): BEN FRANKLIN: AN INGENIOUS LIFE.

Franklin said, in a speech to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, that there are two passions that govern the affairs of men, ambition and avarice. The love of power and the love of money. You can read the rest of his wise words on the graphic.

Because he feared the corrosive effect of money on the process of governing, Franklin believed that representatives should serve without compensation. That was a time when Congress did not pretend to meet year round, only convening periodically to conduct the people's business.

In part one of this "Blessings of Liberty" theme, I noted that members of Congress spend more than 4 and 1/2 times what they will earn during a two-year term in office in order to get elected. They have to raise several thousands of dollars each day toward their re-election. What's wrong with this picture?

I spent the last thirty years of my career working for non-profit organizations. In addition to working for Boards of Directors, over the years I also served on several non-profit Boards, even chairing three such Boards. I witnessed many discussions addressing the future of those organizations, and I saw people coming together time and again (often after serious debate) to agree on the way forward. And I've seen situations where a Board would hold off making a decision because three or four people (out of eighteen, for example) were opposed. Clearly these were people of good will, anxious to find a plan that the vast majority could support.

I'm of the belief that it is possible, on our most serious public debates, for the United States to chart a course on which the vast majority (65 to 70 percent) could agree. To achieve that, compromise is the order of the day. But what we have now is public policy held hostage to the interests of those few in our society that finance political campaigns. Our nation has always had spirited debate on policy disagreements (as I know from my research on Franklin), but what is troublesome now is that there isn't even a good debate going on about to make our governance more effective.

I'm of the opinion that only by moving to a more representative democracy can we wring the disproportionate influence of money out of the political system. Here are a few of my ideas for how we can have a more representative democracy, but I'd like to hear yours.

1) Return to smaller Congressional districts, so that our representatives are more in touch (Yes, I know that would mean having a lot more of them, but it could be worth it.).

2) Insist that Congress meet in Washington for only a few weeks at a time, perhaps as many as four times a year. (Video conferencing could make committee work just as productive while keeping representatives in their districts and more in touch with the needs of the electorate.)

3) Rather than traditional "elections," in the spirit of true representative democracy, groups of citizens (perhaps consisting of 1,000 people) could caucus in high school gyms/auditoriums every two years and select delegates, who would then meet with other delegates (from within a defined Congressional district) to choose the person to represent that district in Congress.

What do you think? Are you happy with governance in America? Do you worry that the same gridlock that has affected our national legislature will soon overtake State Houses as the cost of those campaigns become more and more expensive? This is the kind of conversation I think we need to have in our country.

Blessings of Liberty - Part 1

"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution..."

Those were the words adopted by our Founding Fathers as the preamble of the US Constitution, setting forth the goals of what they hoped would be accomplished by the new democracy.

With the new Congress taking their oaths this month and the president's State of the Union message, in the spirit of my theme of Life's a Mystery, I'd like to reflect on the mystery of governance in America.

I grew up loving politics and fascinated by how our government works. That was nurtured around the kitchen table when I was a kid, as our family would discuss current events. As a result, my undergraduate major was political science. Forty-five years later, it's pretty clear to me that government isn't working any more.

I grew up in the fifties, a time of optimism. America, with its allies, had just defeated totalitarian regimes. Our country was growing, more people moved west, the Interstate highway system was built, communities invested in schools to educate the children of the post-war baby boom, and our nation reached for the moon--literally and figuratively. As the Cold War took hold, the entire world chose sides in USA versus USSR. Ah, the good ole days! I know the threats we face now are serious, but in first grade I had to learn to duck under my desk at school at the prospect of nuclear attack. All rather quaint as I look back.

I'm not sure what event (or series of events) crippled our government. Was it the Vietnam War? Watergate and a president forced to resign? Divisions over Civil Rights and issues of equality? Roe v. Wade? A presidential impeachment? The "welfare state?" Removal of prayer in schools?

What should have been a moment of national unity following the attacks on our country on 9/11/2001, seemed to last no more than a fortnight.

Whatever the catalyst, and perhaps there were multiple ones, depending on one's viewpoint, I haven't talked to anyone on the broad spectrum of political thinking (conservative to liberal) who is happy with the state of affairs in our politics. Frankly, political leaders on both sides of the aisle seem to be taking their cue from the strategy we adopted against the Soviets during the Cold War--"mutually assured destruction." Using that analogy, it feels as if the citizenry have become collateral damage.

The more important question is what steps can citizens take to help move our government beyond gridlock. I'll have a few ideas in "Part 2," and I'd like you to be thinking of ones as well. But let me leave you with two facts to ponder.

1) When our nation began, members of Congress represented districts comprising approximately 30,000 people. Today those districts are at about 700,000.

2) Members of Congress earn $179,000 a year, and spend an average of $1,689,000 at each election to a two-year term.

You're a citizen. Please join the conversation, with a comment below, or perhaps with your family around the dining table.

Remembering Rebecca

It was a year ago that Rebecca passed away. The picture on the left is the last one taken of her. A neighbor snapped it during a holiday party in December 2013, and later shared it with me.

Though many people called her Becky, during our first date I asked what she preferred. She said Rebecca, and that is what I used.

Those who knew her will recall that Rebecca faithfully remembered birthdays and anniversaries. She delighted in sending out cards to family and friends; I'm convinced she was Hallmark's best customer! Of course, she'd also buy cards for me that I would usually open to read, keep for a few days, and then toss. For unexplained reasons, I held onto the Valentine's Day, Wedding Anniversary, and Birthday cards she gave me in 2013. Having them provided comfort as those occasions rolled around this past year. Why did I hang on to them? Life's a mystery.

The painful memories of her final days have given way to more endearing remembrances of fun times together. I think about the first time we met at the Erie Playhouse, the many shows we did together, and how, in those last few months, she helped me learn lines for my Ben Franklin play. We enjoyed numerous vacations - including memorable ones to Arizona, Wyoming, California, London and Paris. Rebecca delighted in moving into new places and decorating them (8 during the course of our married life). And I can picture the two of us exploring several of our new homes while they were still under construction. She never lost her sense of wonder or fondness for whimsy, a trait we shared.

I think back to favorite movies she enjoyed (Star Wars, Star Trek, ET, and Indiana Jones to name a few). She made no secret of the fact that had Harrison Ford ever become available, I would have been history. :-)

She had a lifelong goal of becoming an architect, and returned to school at age 44 to earn a B.S. in Architecture. In my Florida condo, I have a display of architectural models Rebecca made during her

studies at the University of Maryland. She loved design and
working as an architect.

We honeymooned at Disney World, and made return visits nearly every year. Each time I visit Disney now, I smile as I recall her favorite attractions and restaurants. Rebecca especially enjoyed family gatherings with her parents, and sister and brother (Barbara and Charlie); the Clark and Shirk family reunions; and Thanksgivings spent with aunts, uncles and cousins.

Rebecca entered the hospital for the last time on the day after her mother's funeral. In one of our last conversations she told me that she took consolation at her mother's passing, and cited Ben Franklin's eulogy for a friend (from my play): "Our friend is newly born among the immortals... His chair was ready first, and he has gone on before us. After all, we could not all conveniently start together; and why should you and I be grieved at this, since we are soon to follow and know where to find him." I share her solace.

Remembering Rebecca, with love!