Skip to main content

Cooperation isn't a dirty word

I started this slowly evolving blog after hearing Senator Diane Feinstein's inspiring words in the documentary Miss Representation. I find myself, now, even more so, propelled forward by that thought. We are indeed only here on this earth, here engaged with our communities for an instant in what is really an eternity. So our contribute while critical and vital is fleeting. It has been nearly 4 years since I started this blog, and as you can see, I haven't given it a great deal of attention.

There is so much to do, so much need in the world, so much good to be done, so much inequality to be called out. How can I even find time to stop for a few minutes, string together a few well chosen words, and even take another minute to review those chosen words? Certainly not when all three kids need me NOW! (Of course they don't really but don't tell them that!)

Times have certainly been tough these past three months since the world was rocked by the US election in November 2016. I'd be dishonest not to mention that as a proud Wellesley alumna Hillary's loss stung on multiple levels. I am empowered and motivated by all that I see and hear from my fellow alumnae and Hillary supporters, as well as all those who want a better, safer, happier, healthier world for our generation and those to come.

So now is the time to do. Even if that means finally sitting down - how passive is that?! - and writing down some thoughts. Being abroad I feel that I am looking in at a the fishbowl of the US. Most certainly the decisions of the leadership in the US directly and significantly impact the entire world.

As much as I find myself totally overwhelmed by all there is to read, process, and understand about what is going on in the world, I have no doubt it is all that much more overwhelming in the US. As I have been able to tune into the news and brilliant analysis my fabulous Facebook friends highlight for the world to see, I find myself gravitating to certain sound-bites and the ideas they bring to the surface.

One thing that has struck me, disappointed me, and depressed me is the lack of cooperation and bipartisanship in America. There was a time when political parties meant very little once the elected officials arrived in DC. But now that is the meal ticket - get in line with your party's leadership or get out of the way. Bipartisanship and cooperation have become dirty words. 
"'Sooner or later we will get around to things that will require some level of cooperation,' Mr. McConnell said. 'Hopefully there will be a kind of dysfunction fatigue. I think it will set in way before then.'"
(https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/08/us/politics/mitch-mcconnell-donald-trump-republicans.html?smprod=nytcore-ipad&smid=nytcore-ipad-share&_r=0)
I think that Mr McConnell has shown us both with his words and his actions, how little he thinks of Democracy and the institutions that are central to Democracy. Being an elected official is about service - service to those who elected you. It is not about power. Being elected does not mean being imbued with power as a result of being elected. And yet that seems to be precisely what Mr. McConnell and the other leaders of the Republican House, Senate, and White House seem to think is their mandate - to wield power, not to serve the public.


We must rise up and call out what we are seeing - the true colors of our elected leadership at play. We are seeing the misogyny that is inherent on Capitol Hill (Merkley can read Mrs. King's letter, but Warren can't?!). We are seeing the arrogance that comes with perceived unchecked power (not giving Garland even a hearing when he was chosen as a centrist judge, simply because he was chosen by a black president?!). And we are seeing a party drunk on power - at all levels - that must be put in check and brought back to the core ideals of the United States. That golden rule must be polished up - it's not "he who has the gold rules", rather it's "do unto others as you would have them do unto you." And that requires a great deal of collaboration, tolerance, and empathy, which apparently our elected leaders are sorely lacking.


We all must keep speaking up and calling out - to each other and to those far away.

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Macher or Schmoozer?

I'm working my way slowly through the book Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam . In a nutshell, which has to be pretty big because it's a hefty book, it's about social behaviors and the decline of them in the US - things like voting and participating in the political process at all levels, and engaging with volunteer and community efforts. Chapter six looks at Informal Social Connections. At paragraph two of the chapter he mentions the Yiddish words macher and schmoozer . That stopped me in my tracks for a moment. He continued to explain that fundamentally a macher is a doer, someone who makes things happen in the community. Whereas a schmoozer is a talker, a person with an active social life, someone who focuses on informal connections to others. And while it is certainly nice to sit and talk with someone, at the end of the day that's all a schmoozer does. Alternatively, the macher will sit and visit with you and then either your roped into helping or the macher...
Post a Comment
Read more

Safe Responsibility

Having already established that the better choice in life is to take responsibility over placing blame - at least if we want to build relationships - the next step is to figure out how to both muster the courage to take responsibility and also build safe environments to allow others to take responsibility. It strikes me, based on a sample size of 3 children, that the fear of consequences is one of the major, if not THE major, hindrance to taking responsibility for our actions. When we don't know how others will respond to our confession, our admission of responsibility, it makes taking that step even harder. Interestingly, in the Rosh Hashanah (New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) services there are a number of times we recite the Vidui (confessional) prayer. It's almost poem like in our alphabetical recitation of our sins and it is done in the communal form - using plural language. We all stand together and out loud list these sins. Obviously the intent is not that...
Post a Comment
Read more

Family...oy, family

We all come from a family, whether we belong to a family or not at the moment. By family, I mean there are people with whom you are closely, genetically related. I'm tackling a new project this week that involves making a number of phone calls. It's been fun and rewarding so far. Interestingly tonight as I made a few of the phone calls I was struck by some family connected-ness that I encountered. One call was to an old, dear friend. Our lives seem to keep crossing paths in a fairly informal kind of way - enough to keep our friendship alive but not necessarily deepen it or harm it, either. After some time living in other parts of the US she moved back to where she grew up and has sunk down deep roots. I was struck as we finished our chat about how nice that must be for her to be in a place so close to her family. Her family bonds remain strong so when a major family event happens they all gather, even if they all aren't in the same town. It's remarkable, really. A...
Post a Comment
Read more