"Democracy is the most demanding of all forms of government in terms of
energy, imagination and public spirit required of the the individual."
George C. Marshall
Campaign for an Informed Citizenery Concept
There are significant concerns being raised on all levels of the economic and political spectrum these days, concerns on national and international fronts which, although integrated into conservative, liberal and alternative political views, involve all three. The resulting complexities speak to the need for our public to understand the realities of our political and economic order. And this places a corresponding demand on our public to understand the actualities our democracy-capitalist ideological character. In other words its not just the imprint of democracy we need to be concerned with but our longstanding ties to the nature of capitalism.
In this context it is the CIC’s position that there remains a lack of critical analysis related to our American experiment as well as a lack of corresponding ideological dialogue. And this lack has created a collective "identity crisis" in the country, which, particularly given the significant issues on the table, may be the most confounding of our contemporary problems. The piece below captures the essence of the situation:
WHERE IS THE DIALOGUE ABOUT OUR COUNTRY’S IDENTITY?
By James Palombo*
The following piece was previously published at Smerconish.com when the site was initially introduced. It reflects upon a fundamental concern that has manifested itself over the five decades I’ve spent examining the American experiment. Particularly amid the current conversations related to better understanding “who we are,” improving our civic education efforts and developing a more informed citizenry the piece continues to be relevant.
Certainly coming to grips with our collective identity is no small ask. But as we have consistently demonstrated through our trials and triumphs we can do whatever is necessary when we put our minds to it. So please take a read and consider closely what is being suggested. And feel free to reach out accordingly – the need for more civic engagement speaks for itself.
DECLARATION FOR CLARITY
IN AN EFFORT TO JOIN ALL THOSE ENGAGED IN MAKING OURS A MORE HEALTHY AND INFORMED UNION LET IT BE CLEAR THAT:
To understand the positives/greatness and negatives/shortcomings of who we are and who we want to be we need to have clarity on our democracy-capitalist ideological character;
To address the systemic concerns advocated for in the BLM and all other social movements, and to understand how the push for equality pulls at the nature of freedom, we have to understand the essence of that character;
To grasp the differences between democrats and republicans and the rights and lefts of both means to grasp the political and economic elements linked to our ideological character;
To compare our system with socialism and communism requires that we understand each in terms of the respective versions of capitalism employed in forming their ideological characters;
To fully comprehend the actualities of human nature, the global struggles between economic and social (wo)man, how profit motives and public good interests can clash and how our own history relates to these concerns we must examine the realities of our ideological character;
To understand the development of our particular cultural instincts, and the troublesome situations like our dual labor, education and legal processes, and the problems of poverty, crime, health, war and more we must understand how each one is linked to the nature of that same character;
To create legitimate public dialogue within the media, academia, business, government, sports, entertainment and our communities means to create bridges that connect the principles of democracy with the practicalities of capitalism;
To ensure long-standing efforts directed at maintaining legitimate public dialogue we must develop non-partisan, civic education processes across the educational spectrum that, in the interests of having a truly informed citizenry, will include sorting through our ideological character;
To NOT do the above means that we will continue to deny our own reality, in short allowing the contradictions, confusion and Orwellian state of “doublespeak” to flourish;
To let this happen would simply be shameful as it betrays our hard work, good fortune and our spirit of knowing that we must rely on each other for our collective prosperity.
FOR THE SAKE OF US ALL, DESPITE PARTY OR POLICY AFFILIATION, LET’S BE CLEAR. AMID OUR TROUBLESOME TIMES IT’S NOT ABOUT POLITICS IT’S ABOUT EDUCATION. SO LET’S MAKE THE CALL FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING OUR COUNTRY A NATIONAL PRIORITY!
*****************
It is not hard to identify that this "identity crisis" exists. We can simply ask ourselves and our fellow citizens what we in fact know about our “capitalist identity” and it's corresponding mix with our democratic pursuits. Aside from the anxiety (and even fear) that commonly results from mentioning discussions on capitalism, the often relayed responses tied to not wanting to discuss politics, not caring about politics, or feeling that its simply too confusing, are more than enough evidence of our troubling situation. Moreover, the limited research on what Americans might actually know in terms of the political and economic concepts tied to our two-party system, as well as to ideological frames across the world, again speaks to this concern.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: It is based on the ideological clarity shortcomings noted that the CIC efforts continue. Through discussions on social media, on campuses and in public settings it is being encouraged that through more comprehensive civic education efforts we can better frame the issues
of our day within the context of our true ideological character. This will result in creating legitimate, non-partisan, public dialogue related to both our national and international concerns.
As with all efforts of this type the CIC initiative require contacts, networking and funding. And it is in these areas where you can help. All you need to do is reach out with your interests and we can work together from there. Go to our contact link and drop a note, it's that simple. Clearly the time to act is now - nothing but our collective future lies in the balance.
In this context it is the CIC’s position that there remains a lack of critical analysis related to our American experiment as well as a lack of corresponding ideological dialogue. And this lack has created a collective "identity crisis" in the country, which, particularly given the significant issues on the table, may be the most confounding of our contemporary problems. The piece below captures the essence of the situation:
WHERE IS THE DIALOGUE ABOUT OUR COUNTRY’S IDENTITY?
By James Palombo*
The following piece was previously published at Smerconish.com when the site was initially introduced. It reflects upon a fundamental concern that has manifested itself over the five decades I’ve spent examining the American experiment. Particularly amid the current conversations related to better understanding “who we are,” improving our civic education efforts and developing a more informed citizenry the piece continues to be relevant.
Certainly coming to grips with our collective identity is no small ask. But as we have consistently demonstrated through our trials and triumphs we can do whatever is necessary when we put our minds to it. So please take a read and consider closely what is being suggested. And feel free to reach out accordingly – the need for more civic engagement speaks for itself.
DECLARATION FOR CLARITY
IN AN EFFORT TO JOIN ALL THOSE ENGAGED IN MAKING OURS A MORE HEALTHY AND INFORMED UNION LET IT BE CLEAR THAT:
To understand the positives/greatness and negatives/shortcomings of who we are and who we want to be we need to have clarity on our democracy-capitalist ideological character;
To address the systemic concerns advocated for in the BLM and all other social movements, and to understand how the push for equality pulls at the nature of freedom, we have to understand the essence of that character;
To grasp the differences between democrats and republicans and the rights and lefts of both means to grasp the political and economic elements linked to our ideological character;
To compare our system with socialism and communism requires that we understand each in terms of the respective versions of capitalism employed in forming their ideological characters;
To fully comprehend the actualities of human nature, the global struggles between economic and social (wo)man, how profit motives and public good interests can clash and how our own history relates to these concerns we must examine the realities of our ideological character;
To understand the development of our particular cultural instincts, and the troublesome situations like our dual labor, education and legal processes, and the problems of poverty, crime, health, war and more we must understand how each one is linked to the nature of that same character;
To create legitimate public dialogue within the media, academia, business, government, sports, entertainment and our communities means to create bridges that connect the principles of democracy with the practicalities of capitalism;
To ensure long-standing efforts directed at maintaining legitimate public dialogue we must develop non-partisan, civic education processes across the educational spectrum that, in the interests of having a truly informed citizenry, will include sorting through our ideological character;
To NOT do the above means that we will continue to deny our own reality, in short allowing the contradictions, confusion and Orwellian state of “doublespeak” to flourish;
To let this happen would simply be shameful as it betrays our hard work, good fortune and our spirit of knowing that we must rely on each other for our collective prosperity.
FOR THE SAKE OF US ALL, DESPITE PARTY OR POLICY AFFILIATION, LET’S BE CLEAR. AMID OUR TROUBLESOME TIMES IT’S NOT ABOUT POLITICS IT’S ABOUT EDUCATION. SO LET’S MAKE THE CALL FOR BETTER UNDERSTANDING OUR COUNTRY A NATIONAL PRIORITY!
*****************
It is not hard to identify that this "identity crisis" exists. We can simply ask ourselves and our fellow citizens what we in fact know about our “capitalist identity” and it's corresponding mix with our democratic pursuits. Aside from the anxiety (and even fear) that commonly results from mentioning discussions on capitalism, the often relayed responses tied to not wanting to discuss politics, not caring about politics, or feeling that its simply too confusing, are more than enough evidence of our troubling situation. Moreover, the limited research on what Americans might actually know in terms of the political and economic concepts tied to our two-party system, as well as to ideological frames across the world, again speaks to this concern.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: It is based on the ideological clarity shortcomings noted that the CIC efforts continue. Through discussions on social media, on campuses and in public settings it is being encouraged that through more comprehensive civic education efforts we can better frame the issues
of our day within the context of our true ideological character. This will result in creating legitimate, non-partisan, public dialogue related to both our national and international concerns.
As with all efforts of this type the CIC initiative require contacts, networking and funding. And it is in these areas where you can help. All you need to do is reach out with your interests and we can work together from there. Go to our contact link and drop a note, it's that simple. Clearly the time to act is now - nothing but our collective future lies in the balance.
