(A Call for the Common Good)
Platitude – a dull remark, especially if it’s said as if it were profound. The word “platitude” joined English from French, the first known record of it as “platitude” was in 1812 and it had the same meaning then. It was a combination of the French plat meaning flat (as in plateau) and was coined to form an analogy of the word “latitude,” which really extended the “flatness” of the word. The “plat” in platypus, is the same “plat” and is a corruption of “platypous,” where the “pous” meant “footed”—platypuses apparently have flat feet.**
(Interesting to note is that the platypus has venomous, hollow bone spurs on its hind legs. Because of the bone spurs they were deferred from military service, most notably in the Vietnam War.)
Well. Here we are, with a new old President-elect after a contentious race fueled largely by falsehoods and fear that led to the division of many friends and families. Projected political policies have many in serious doubt about the panacea of the platitude that “every thing’s gonna be alright.” Why? Because every little thing’s not gonna be alright unless we return to striving for the common good as found in the Pledge of Allegiance, “with liberty and justice for all” and as Abraham Lincoln said, “With malice toward none; with charity for all.”
The looming menace of a potentially dystopian demagoguery paves the way for a plethora of injustices like a China-esque policy of limiting the size of families (formerly from one child, now three). Far-fetched you say? Since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, women and their health care providers have lived under the specter of imprisonment for abortions, even when the life of the mother is in danger. That’s not birth control. It’s controlled birth.
Transgender people and other minorities can expect limited rights and more unbridled prejudicial treatment. The wealthy elite can expect lower taxes while the working class and poor can expect just the opposite. Legal immigrants can expect to continue to be demonized in a nation founded by immigrants. Climate change could be essentially ignored. The Department of Education may be gutted or done away with. Those who disagree with the coming administration may have to look over their shoulders for fear of reprisals. States that did not go red may be deprived of federal disaster assistance.
All these possibilities and more could come to pass. Most of them would not only negatively impact those on the left but would also bleed over to the right. Add to that those the President-elect’s nominations of totally unqualified individuals for major roles in his administration, which only compounds the concern over the potential demise of our governmental infrastructure. The good ol’ USA has stepped onto a slippery slope. How do we keep from falling off the edge?
Effective solutions will require more statecraft (the art of conducting government affairs) and less partisanship. In my lifetime I have seen the severe decline of such diplomacy and wisdom. As we have become more and more polarized, crossing the legislative aisle is close to extinction. Is it realistic to be optimistic—even cautiously?
In her concession speech Vice President Kamala (COMMA-la, not ca-MALA) Harris rightly said that we must accept the outcome of the election, unlike 2020 election deniers, but to continue “the fight that fueled this campaign.” It is not a fight for domination, but rather for the common good, yea, the survival of our cherished democracy.
The Divided States of America could again become united. We the people must seize the day, much as the Civil Rights activists and Vietnam war opposers did in the 1960s and 70s, fighting for true justice and true freedom for all.
People cannot be free unless they are willing to sacrifice some of their interests to guarantee the freedom of others. The price of democracy is the ongoing pursuit of the common good by all of the people. —Saul Alinsky
It is difficult for the common good to prevail against the intense concentration of those who have a special interest, especially if the decisions are made behind locked doors. —Jimmy Carter
…and that’s the View from The Balcony.
Randy Weeks is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Board Certified Telemental Health Provider, Certified Shamanic Life Coach, ordained minister, singer-songwriter, actor, and writer.
*A tip of the hat to the late, great Bob Marley
**TreeThinker: https://etymologyotd.wordpress.com/, November 6, 2018.
