HomeHomeNovember 2004
Post-Election Reflection
"The richness of our own lives, creative and receptive, depends on how closely we identify ourselves with the struggles and problems, individual and social, as well as with the hopes and ideals of the age in which we live"
---Anita Block
It remains one of the most interesting and challenging of times in America, with our soldiers fighting an unpopular war overseas and returning to a divided homeland. Amid all the tension and strife, a bitter U.S. Presidential election was held. The incumbent President was determined to see the war through to the end, while the Senator who opposed him spoke out against the war. Millions of voters were jubilant when the incumbent was re-elected, and many were devastated that the challenger was defeated. There was much post-election analysis, as citizens pondered the direction the nation would take.
Sound familiar? The year was 1972, and the rivals for the Presidency were then-President Richard Nixon and Senator George McGovern (D-SD). The nation faced many challenges at that time and in the years following that election, just as America does today.
An Elder Statesman Speaks Out
A few weeks before the recent election, former Senator McGovern came through the Twin Cities to promote his new book, The Essential America: Our Founders and the Liberal Tradition (2004, Simon & Schuster, New York.). McGovern, a WWII Air Force veteran, is now in his early 80's. From the perspective of his long political career, and because he is not beholden to the interest groups that have a profound affect on present-day politics, he can speak his mind freely in our democratic country.
As his book title suggests, he remains an ardent supporter of the very American tradition of liberalism. This is especially brave in an era in which the label "Liberal" is considered a dirty word in some circles. He writes:
"....I challenge my conservative friends to name a single federal program now generally approved by both of our major parties that was not first pushed by liberals over the opposition of conservatives. Consider Medicare, which no politician would even think of opposing today. When it was first advanced by liberals, conservatives cried, "socialism." Indeed, my friend George Bush, Sr.-then a congressman-predicted that if Congress adopted Medicare, the American health care system would collapse. I'm pleased that our former president long ago changed his mind. Changing one's mind is not a sin. Indeed, it is a way of saying that I'm wiser today than I was yesterday...
Social Security-an FDR liberal proposal-frightened conservatives into their closets. But today is there a single politician of either major party who will stand up and attack Social Security? Even Ronald Reagan, who detested most U.S. government programs except for the military, a part of the government he never experienced except in the movies, finally embraced Social Security. He was wiser than he was the day before."
Against A Black/White Mentality
When George McGovern served in the Senate, the nation was divided, but at the time, Congressional leaders, Republican and Democrat alike, had learned to compromise and hammer out legislation for the benefit of their constituents. They may not have agreed with all results, but they did the best they could, given the information they had. Though considered rivals at work, many congressmen were personal friends outside of their offices. There was less of the hateful, spiteful partisanship that exists today.
True to his earlier ideals, Mr. McGovern believes in calling the nation to a "higher standard" when we are following an "unwise course." He also notes that our democracy offers freedom and majority rule, but wisdom and virtue are not guaranteed. In our form of government, he says, we have the "right to be wrong as well as right."
McGovern's views on patriotism are clear:
"...To the self-styled patriot with his bumper sticker 'America, Love It or Leave It,' I would respond, 'America, let us improve it so we may love it the more.'..."
Though these are only a few of the many ideas in his book, McGovern offers us the unique perspective of one who has not only survived an earlier brutal presidential campaign in very divided nation, but one who has given a lifetime of public service to America.
More Complex Than A Bumper Sticker Slogan
Just as in 1972, current-day America is facing difficult choices, and the current war is only one aspect of these turbulent times. The high voter turnouts this month indicate that we feel passionately about the course our country is on. Speaking out, and speaking up is an essential part of our democracy. In the challenges ahead, we need the liberal tradition in balance with our values to push our nation forward.
On November 11th, we celebrated Veteran's Day. While it is easy to express support for our military personnel in Iraq by putting bumper stickers on our cars, how can we help those in more tangible ways who are carrying most of the burden and making most of the sacrifices? For many American military personnel and their families, "new economy" means having to cope with the desperate financial consequences of having breadwinners absent for long periods of time, or of returning with grievous injuries--many will never work again--or of not returning at all. I would like to see more stories in the media about ways in which we can support those who are giving so much while many of the rest of us haven't even been asked to endure a little inconvenience.
Finally...
In the knockdown, drag-out fight that was the presidential election of 2004, the candidates and their families showed remarkable stamina in their criss-crossing of the nation. The families, in particular, were subjected to stresses unimaginable to the rest of us ordinary mortals. Would we be able to handle intense travel schedules, media scrutiny and intrusion, and the downright fatigue as the Kerry/Edwards/Bush/Cheney families?
Our prayers go out to Elizabeth Edwards and her family as she recovers her health.
Teresa
tcallies@hotmail.comNews from WITNE Friends:
Storyteller Noa Baum will have performed "A Land Twice Promised" at St. Joan of Arc Church in Minneapolis on November 13th, 7:30 p.m. Her full schedule can be accessed at http://www.noabaum.com/schedule.html
As we've mentioned before, Noa's performance is a beautiful collection of stories told from the Israeli and Palestinian viewpoints. She does not claim to represent all Israelis or Palestinians, but examines the issues from personal experience and real lives of women affected by years of war.
More About a Fellow South Dakotan
I confess a certain affection for Mr. McGovern, though I do not know him personally. He came from humble beginnings in small-town South Dakota, and his parents were "conservative Republicans." Having also grown up in this "red" state, I can relate to the conservative elements there. In Mitchell, SD, where McGovern began his career at Dakota Wesleyan University, the future George and Eleanor McGovern Library and Center for Public Service will be built.
Incidently, this is also the same university where I attended Girls' State many years ago. Girls' State is basically a week-long civics lesson for high school juniors and is held annually in each state in the nation. Along with the "politics" of the Girls' State experience, it is just plain fun.
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