Growing up in my Village I saw my dad walk picket lines. He worked hard to put food on the table and support our family. I saw how my family and the Village benefited from the policies of the Democratic Party and FDR’s New Deal. Blue collar workers, mom and pop shops, small businesses prospered. They made up the middle class. Corporations profited because of the increased productivity by their employees. And all paid their fair share to fund our village. Village Community Services provided for roads, clean water, public education, better fire and police protection.
Practicing Dentistry in my Village was like any other business. Providing a quality service was important. My employees helped me make that possible. They were the profit creators. And they deserved to be paid enough to provide for family, receive medical care without fear of losing their homes, paid time to care for family members, take time off to enjoy a trip with their family, and retire in dignity.
Our Village believed in Nurturing Progressive Values. Progressive Values are American Values. We valued Empathy. We believed in the Golden Rule. We believed in self-responsibility and a moral obligation to help others. We welcomed and accepted new members to our village. They brought with them a diversity of ideas and skills. They make us stronger.
As the elders died many of the values were forgotten or lost. Conservative Authoritarian Values started showing up. Father Figure Authorities defined what was right or wrong. They determined the rules. You only need to be responsible for yourself. You will be better off and so will the Village. There was a moral belief system hierarchy concept of men over women, Christians over non-Christians, whites over blacks, the rich over poor.
No matter where we are from or what we look like we all belong to a village. But today, certain politicians and their corporate donors profit by dividing us. They try to make us fear each other so we won’t come together to demand the schools, health care, and jobs all of our families needs. Corporations rig the rules to take from the working people. We the people are the government. Capitalism and Democracy are compatible only if democracy is strong and vibrant. Democracy is based on Empathy. Democracy is about caring and being concerned how people feel. We need to go all in for all of us, joining together with people from all walks of life to make a better future for us all.
Welcome to my village. I look forward to sharing with you a vision for the future of what our Village can be……..