Can a Cry for Fairness Bridge the Gap Across Ideologies?

  I’ve written much about the growing divide between the left and right in America in recent years, likening it to a new civil war of ideologies. It occurred to me last week there may actually be hope for bridging the divide and connecting us all again as citizens. Rationality hasn’t worked nor have pleas for civility, respectfulness and accuracy. Perhaps there could be a new reconciler in the wings.

One of the unintended consequences of the recent Wall Street meltdown has been an outrage on both sides of the ideological divide over one thing: the American people feel ripped off by market manipulators, particularly when those most responsible for this debacle walk away with millions in compensation. While we have been willing to reward greed, rewarding incompetence is not part of the American psyche.  The outrage being reported around the Wall Street and banking meltdown seems to transcend ideologies. “This isn’t fair!” is a cry from all directions, not just left or right.

Americans have remained fairly quiet on a number of social fairness issues, among them equal compensation for women who do the same work as men, the legal system favoring defendants with money over those who don’t have much and special interest groups getting exceptional treatment by government . These are just three social inequities America has allowed to persist without major objection. Perhaps the pain of this global monetary crisis may hurt enough people bad enough that the social fairness agenda will come to a head and serve enough as a bond for a healing to occur across ideologies.

Market fundamentalists who normally scream hands off the regulation buttons are admitting something needs to be done to rein in the ever-ending greed and manipulations that have become so commonplace in the market. The triggering event for this change of heart may be the blatant unfairness of rewarding “over the top” greed and incompetence. Once there’s a willingness to look at the fairness issue, it becomes a human matter not an ideological one. There is a built-in unfairness in the system.

Washington insiders have lobbied for generations to tilt the tables in their favor, shaping the market to their liking. Anyone who examines all the special interests and the benefits they gain while the rest of us go without will see the market has been manipulated in their favor.

People are basically good at their core but circumstances seem to influence the decisions and choices they make. The culture that has existed on Wall Street includes taking advantage of if legal loopholes; it is okay!  Another has been “if it isn’t illegal then it must be all right.”  In others words, don’t bother using your conscience; just find ways to make a quick buck as fast as possible. And – there is no such thing as too much profit! This explains the culture that has been dominant until now and sheds some light on how CEOs can feel completely justified taking home $35 million while their companies are going bankrupt or being bailed out.

Am I being naïve and overly optimistic? I hope not. Something needs to transcend this deepening of the ideological divide among Americans – most of whom are essentially good people. We are tearing ourselves apart through this polarization and if ideals can’t bring us together maybe the shared pain and sheer outrage at the degree to which a small group of people will profit from the loss by so many others will reunite us.  Will our basic human values regarding what’s right and what’s wrong prevail?  I hope so.

Comments

[Stephen Phillips]

Your writings and our conversations over the past several months have caused me to examine my own part in maintaining this divide. I clearly see myself as having contributed to the division.

When I hear the word, "Republican," I experience an instant visceral reaction. A cascade of labels rush through my mind which include; money obsessed, anal-retentive, tight-minded, narrow, small, and unpleasant. I want to say that up until now, I've not been able to find a way to stop this reactive stream of consciousness. This is wrong.

The truth is that I don't want to stop it. I own it. I feel terribly ripped-off by the politics of these overly righteous people - who have held sway over our republic for most of my years.

I recognize - that these people have similar reactions over my views and for the politics which I embrace.

Where I challenge your message - is in the notion that people of the right would find common ground in addressing the injustices of our land.

I suggest the 'red state' view would be what it always is. If you want justice - earn more. If you find you were born a female - prove to the market that paying you less is somehow limiting our profits, and we will pay you more. And, supporting and expanding our special interest groups, helps us to expand our hold on power - prove otherwise. The market rules and we will accept nothing less.

You will detect a taste of bitterness here and you're right.

Having said all of this: I indict the sin and not the sinner. My brother is a fairly entrenched Republican - and yet I enjoy sitting with him and discussing the politics of the day. We both surprise ourselves in the number of times we find agreement - or a way to re-define a problem such that we can find an acceptable compromise.

This becomes our task - to leave our political minds and labels at the door and embrace our humanity before sitting down to talk. To embrace our brotherhood and sisterhood. It must be conscious.

But before we start, I will insist that you admit that the word 'capitalism' does not appear even once in the Constitution.

[John Renesch]

Welcome, Stephen, bitterness and all. Thanks for your candor and willingness to look at your own contribution to the painful divide that exists in our beloved United States. This divide is deep and won't be healed easily, to be sure, but it starts with a willingness to engage.

Presently I am engaged with a conservative friend who consistently brands me a raging liberal. Our last email exchange was prompted by his reaction to my last newsletter editorial (http://www.renesch.com/newsletters/aha125.htm ). He sees things in my editorials that I cannot see, as if he's reading a different article!

After several exchanges, we hit an impasse which I consider a recess until it occurs to me how I can further the dialogue without pouring more gasoline on the fire. It is challenging!

But continued willingness to stand toe to toe and remain engaged - even if a recess every now and then it needed - is the only way to mend matters and heal. There's is nothing wrong with disagreement and differences. In fact differences is one of the things that makes our country great. But disrespect, arrogance, righteousness and meanspiritedness poison the well of reconciliation.