What kind of world do we want for the next generation?

Many years ago, as a favor to my father who was under consideration for a civil service position, I began my political life as a registered Republican. And I might have remained so — back then, Republicans such as Nelson Rockefeller, John Lindsey and Bill Scranton stood for reasonableness, balanced budgets, and often, a fairly progressive social policy. But the party itself was on the wrong side of history: pro-Vietnam War (this was the late-’60s), and anti-civil rights (remember Nixon’s “Southern strategy”?). And so, I switched my affiliation to the Democrats.

But as I look back, even then it was not because I believed in the Democrats’ “vision” for America. Now, it is true that in the 1960s, Democrats, at significant political risk, took positions against racial, and later, gender discrimination. Hard to argue with either of those. But what did we want the world to look like 30 years later? For example, did we share Martin Luther King Jr.’s “dream,” or was that just wishful thinking? And what was the plan to get there? Did we think it was just going to happen?

The fact is, with few exceptions (Robert Kennedy, possibly) it has seldom been articulated what, exactly, the Democrat’s vision is. Over time, this ‘lack of an articulated vision’ has only gotten worse (“at least we’re not as bad as those guys” is not a viable political argument) eventually leading, in my view, to the political disaster of 2016.

So that led me to wonder: What is the world that Americans want for our children and grandchildren? If we could come to some agreement on that, we could start talking about how we might get there. But if we can’t agree on, and articulate, where we want to go, it’s not unreasonable for people to say, “I think I’ll stay where I am, thank you very much” or even “let’s go back to a vision of a better time.” Whether either of those statements is realistic is beside the point. It is time for Americans to declare what we are for, not just what we are against.

If our current political dialogue fails to describe a vision for an America that you believe in, perhaps it’s time that we created one. That’s what a government “of the people” means. If we want to change the world, we first have to decide what we want it to look like. And really, what else is there to do?

So here’s my suggestion for a place to start:

▪ Education: We believe that providing every American with access to a quality education is an important investment in our future, and that our education system should be designed to give students the set of skills that prepare them for the modern world.

▪ Health care: We believe that access to basic health care is a human right, and can be accomplished in a way that is more efficient and less expensive than our current model.

▪ Environment: We believe that every American has a right to clean air and water, and that we shouldn’t leave the world worse off than we found it.

▪ Criminal justice: We believe that every American should be treated equally under the law, unaffected by their race or economic status.

▪ Poverty: With the cost of food at the lowest level in human history, we believe there is no reason for anyone in America to go hungry.

▪ Citizenship: We believe that a person’s economic status should not affect his or her ability to vote or otherwise participate in our democracy; our public schools should teach students the skills needed to become active and effective citizens. (I borrowed this idea from Ben Franklin.)

▪  Economy: We believe in public support for infrastructure that creates opportunities for everyone (examples: roads and the internet); and that a “free-market system” only works when it is genuinely “free.” Relative size and wealth should not result in an unfair advantage.

▪ Taxes: As the beneficiaries of an economic system that makes it possible to become rich, the wealthiest Americans should be taxed at a rate that is at least as high as the rate paid by everyone else.

▪ Community and personal safety: We believe that everyone has a right to feel safe in their home and communities.

▪ Foreign policy: While recognizing that these values are sometimes in conflict, the United States should nevertheless be a credible voice for stability, self-determination, human rights and the reduction of conflict and human suffering worldwide.

Agree or disagree? What have I missed?

This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 7:29 PM with the headline "What kind of world do we want for the next generation?."