The 3 issues that MIGHT unite left & right, liberal & conservative
There are plenty of non-starters which make collaboration and communication Dead On Arrival (DOA) in any conversation. For me, it’s when persons insist that the holocaust and mass shootings are fake, the 2020 presidential election was rigged and the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capital was “no big deal”.
There seems to be no “feel good” or “do good” or “common cause” endeavor on the horizon that will unite all persons on the socio-political and cultural spectrum. It seems like no amount of positive modeling, fact checking and rationalizing will avert polarization in society in general and politics in particular.
Instead, the common denominator seems to be anger, distrust and disillusionment expressed by everybody. Every conversation tracks back to concern about violence, waste and corruption. So let’s drill down on each of these situations and figure out how seemingly odd-bedfellows can unite over common concerns.
VIOLENCE
For the record and to be very clear, I’m not advocating violence.
That said, the fear of violence, crime and personal safety is a common denominator for everyone. We are hard wired as fight or flight creatures.
Many folks (particularly the MAGA supporters and many conservatives) are outraged by illegal immigrants who commit crime, especially felonies. Their concern is certainly legitimate.
However, if they could ramp up to be equally fired up by every violent crime committed by EVERY person, including USA citizens, maybe we could pledge to work together to root out ALL violent felons and repeat offenders. Pledge to follow the mantra of “a crime against one is a crime against all”. Pledge to not cherry pick what violent crimes and repeat offenders we chose to get outraged about. I suggest making a pact to march to the courthouse and demand justice for EVERY incident of violent crime no matter who is the perpetrator and who is the victim.
Common sense and logic dictates that EVERYONE would want to see that NOBODY who commits acts of violence should be allowed to roam in society. This especially applies to repeat offenders, the incorrigible, the most heinous acts of violence and those who by their actions show no regard for human life. This would include child molesters, rapists, mass shooters, drive-by shooters, road rage shooters and serial killers just to name a few. It would seem that everyone could buy into the proposal that all these individuals be permanently removed from society. What I’m proposing here is universal intolerance for violent perpetrators and swift justice for victims. Notice that I am not mentioning gun control or regulation. I’m not defaulting into discussions about mental health issues. I’m not distinguishing the characteristics of the violent offender based on wealth, race, ethnicity or citizenship status. For those whose outrage varies depending upon who is the perpetrator and who is the victim, I question whether we are on the same page concerning the topic of crime and violence.
If we can get onto the same page, then we can begin to work together on solutions concerning the non-violent offenders. Once we can agree concerning what to do about ALL violent offenders, then the conversation can proceed to find common ground on violence prevention, mental health treatment, addiction prevention and remediation for everyone else.
WASTE
Everybody HATES waste, no matter what their political stripe. Nobody is ok with spending “good money after bad”. Everybody insists on a positive return-on-investment (ROI). You get more mileage out of identifying wasteful situations rather than proposing programs and arguing about spending levels. Unite around specific examples of cutting the fat. Avoid generalities lamenting waste and bureaucracy in government. Focus on outrageous, willful misappropriation of funds rather than getting into debates concerning how to spend money or where to cut budgets. A side benefit to focusing on specific examples of waste would be rooting out employees who are lazy, indifferent and inefficient. Once the waste issue can be resolved, there can be meaningful conversation about how to best spend funds. A side benefit might the fact that additional funds may be found when waste has been identified.
CORRUPTION
Everybody seems to derogatively refer to “the powers that be” and despise monopolies. This applies to big pharma, big medical insurance industry, big tech, big bad real estate speculators, overpriced colleges and their loan servicing cohorts, venture capitalists and hedge fund moguls flipping houses and canibalizing, commodifying our economy. The root of all evil as perceived by the masses, the working class, the middle class and the rest of us “little people” tracks back to the big, impersonal and out-of-control cabals that keep our prices high and destroy our dreams of a better future. Just ask my adult kids who have lost hope of buying a home or escaping crushing college debt. Just ask all the persons who work 2 and 3 jobs barely making ends meet and saving nothing. Just ask persons who lose their home and file bankruptcy because of medical debt. It all started after the 2008 crash when the “big shots” who were “too big to fail” got bailed out while the rest of us got squat. Persons of every political, ethnic, racial and cultural stripe need to agree that we’re getting systematically screwed by these cabals. They need to focus like a laser on examples of how these “powers that be” are crushing us. We need to put aside our differences and work together for mutual benefit. If everybody got enraged by the white-collar criminals as much as they got enraged by the local criminal thug, we might get more mileage taking our country back. Conversations need to be re-directed from culture wars and emotional hot spots. Worry less about whose in our bathrooms, what’s on our bookshelf and whether I stand or kneel during the national anthem. Instead, focus on the pure greed and corruption that if unchecked will revert the middle class to subservient serfdom. Tap into the universal question as to why we all are working harder while achieving less.
In sum, the mantra that will unite the USA needs to be a sense of common outrage where an attack on one is an attack on all. The reality is that anger motivates and anger unites. If this anger can be channeled, we might avert the slippery slope of polarization and alienation.
I’m all for dreaming big, engaging in forward thinking by keeping our eye on the long game. However, when I observe the angst, disgust, and disillusionment expressed by persons everywhere on the spectrum (especially the far left and far right), it might behoove us to focus on the genuinely outrageous and unjust in the present circumstances before we consider tackling future projects. The recent national election is an indication that this might be a more prudent and practical model for longer term success. It’s a strategy worth considering. There may be no path toward addressing long term, big issues such as global warming and social justice until we acknowledge visceral, practical situations and channel sentiments that we can agree upon.
As always, feedback and suggestions are always encouraged and check out my ongoing blogs at www.dunnwriteswell.com
Dunn Writes Well 