Sally Kohn posted an essay at Alternet yesterday that called on Democrats to change their thinking on Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. Rather than framing the issue as "we want a moderate like O'Connor," Kohn writes, why not acknowledge that this is dishonest and use the opportunity to talk about what we really want in a Supreme Court justice?
You could boil her essay down to this: Since Democrats can't win the nomination fight, why not use the process to communicate values? This is a very George Lakoff concept, and sure enough, she references him, quoting Lakoff's 10-word prescription for a winning progressive message: "stronger America, broad prosperity, better future, effective government and mutual responsibility."
Here are Kohn's 10 words: participatory democracy, sustainable localism, community ownership, personal liberty and global interdependence.
Here are mine: 1. integrity; 2. compassion; 3. honor; 4. freedom; 5. fairness.
I don't need 10 words, and I think Lakoff's core ideas are much better than his application of them. Focus-group phrases like "stronger America, better future" are vague unto meaningless. I want values that represent a promise, and I want leaders who will commit to it. If they break their word, I want accountability.
That's it. That's all.
I need five words. How many do you need?
I like your five, but I'll add one more:
6. Respect
It's often found in company with the five you mention anyway.
Posted by: DeweyS | Thursday, August 18, 2005 at 15:23
I might add "commitment to deal in reality, not partisan fantasy." I don't know how to put that in one word. Sanity? Reasonableness? Honesty.
Posted by: benbrazil | Thursday, August 18, 2005 at 23:16
OK, so between the three of us we've got seven words: 1. integrity; 2. compassion; 3. honor; 4. freedom; 5. fairness; 6. respect; 7. honesty.
And I'm thinking: Is that all we need? What are we missing? Because if you just take those seven words and you take them with all seriousness, then I think you've got a powerful political party and the moral standing to speak to anyone.
You can derive all sorts of policies from those values, but the most important thing, to me, is what those policies PREVENT you from doing. A government that really and truly acted in accord with our seven words would not start phony wars. It wouldn't degrade air quality with a bill called the "Clear Skies Act." It wouldn't strip bankruptcy protection from working people in a giveaway to the credit card industy, and it damn sure wouldn't be satisfied with a health care system in which children are uninsured.
Fairness? There go no-bid deals for Halliburton. Respect? That's your tone for political discourse and the way your IRS treats taxpayers.
I'm not convinced it's a complete list, but I think it's already as powerful a set of political values as I've seen. What are we missing? We've got room for three more, if we need 'em.
Posted by: Daniel | Friday, August 19, 2005 at 08:12
I'm not sure if we need it, but I seriously considered adding "Tolerance" to "Respect". I think it comes from the 7 we have, but I sort of felt that way about "Respect", too.
In any case, I would define "tolerance" as "accepting that people are different and do not need to be changed".
My hesitation in adding the word is that it has been over used and subverted by the hippy thought police.
Posted by: DeweyS | Friday, August 19, 2005 at 13:27
yeah, I'd beware of "tolerance." It's been turned into a code-word for "anything goes and you have to like it." Respect ought to cover it, if people understood what the word means.
I would like to see something that expresses a willingness to act and be involved rather than just passively accepting whatever comes down the pipe. I was having a hard time thinking of a good word, though.
It's amazing the number of words that have been co-opted by advertising. Like, I can't hear "active" without thinking "active seniors depend on Depends! or some other ridiculous kitschy slogan.
any suggestions?
Posted by: Janet | Monday, August 22, 2005 at 09:22
On Jeda's concept of (roughly): Put your money where your mouth is.
I like it, and I think we need to add such a word.
"Commitment"? Also over-used for other things, and not quite right...
Posted by: DeweyS | Thursday, August 25, 2005 at 14:00
I also think we need a word that expresses intelligence or wisdom... not a dogmatic approach to problem solving, but an approach that demands intelligent analysis and. Something that suggests we value people who have knowledge and will choose wisely.
Thesaurus? Where are you?
Posted by: Daniel | Thursday, August 25, 2005 at 14:22
I didn't see this thread when it first arose. While I have to grit my teeth to use the word after it became a cliche during the Bush, Sr. White House, the word we're looking for here is the classical concept of "prudence." When employed by Cicero et al (Hobbes even!), it refers to "practical wisdom" or the ability to contemplate the right course of action within contigent circumstances. While one has guiding principles, of course, prudence does not allow dogma. It's making wise decisions in practical circumstances that contain large number of complex issues and desires.
Posted by: jmsloop | Monday, October 30, 2006 at 10:53