Obama and us
The past week’s news, filled with hype and hoopla about President Obama’s first 100 days in office, has me wondering about something: Is Obama putting us to sleep? Are we expecting him to solve our problems for us?
By “us” and “we” and “our” in those questions, I’m referring to ordinary Americans, those who used to be called the “silent majority.”
When we read about Obama, when we hear him on the radio and see him on television, we should remember something: America is a democracy. We citizens are his bosses. His job is to follow our directions.
Our job is give him clear directions. That means we have to be active citizens. We can’t just go to sleep and expect him to know and do what’s right.
It’s not enough to just complain, criticize, and protest. That’s particularly true these days, when some protests are like the anti-tax “tea parties” of two weeks ago. Those were mainly PR events for the Republican party and its friends at Fox news.
The reason I write this blog and work so hard to promote the idea of Citizen Dividends is that I want to live in a society based on real justice for all, real freedom for all, real dignity for all. Too often, it seems to me, justice, freedom, and dignity are just rhetoric.
Justice, freedom, and dignity are denied or impaired when people lack an income, enough for food and shelter at least. Income security for all is necessary.
But we can’t just sit back and wait for Obama to solve our problems for us. Indeed, if we expect him to do so, we’re just reinforcing our sense of powerlessness. And we’re actually making it less likely that there will be any real progress on climate change, health care, education reform, and so on.
What do you think? Do these ideas make sense to you? Do you see the connection between income security and democracy?
To learn more about these ideas, visit the home page and other material on this web site, www.IncomeSecurityForAll.org.
You can read the complete plan, the idea and how we can implement it, in my book, Peaceful, Positive Revolution, which is available from Tendril Press.
I hope you’ll also comment on this blog. And please help spread the word. That’s how real change happens, from individuals talking to our friends, family members, neighbors, co-workers.
Steven Shafarman
Tags: Barack Obama, ordinary citizens
May 4th, 2009 at 6:33 am
Hi, good post. I have been pondering this topic,so thanks for writing. I’ll certainly be subscribing to your posts.
May 4th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
Thanks for your comments. Please help spread the word. Steve Shafarman
May 5th, 2009 at 6:50 am
Wow, I like what you are saying. At first I rejected the idea, but, the more I read and think about it, the more I am liking it. Great job.
May 6th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
Thanks. A lot of people tell me they only accepted these ideas after thinking for a while. Most of us, it seems to me, initially respond to new ideas by ignoring, dismissing, or rejecting them, perhaps only because they are new and unfamiliar. The challenge is to get enough people to pause and think.
Please help spread the word. There will be Citizen Dividends sooner or later, and sooner will be better for everyone, for our communities and our planet. You can play a key role.
Steven Shafarman