Final NSN Post

When I first conceived the National Safety Net (NSN) political proposal I never thought of it as the ANSWER or the SOLUTION to the tragedy of American life, but rather I thought of it as a stopgap measure, a first step, a beginning, to ameliorate the worse aspects of this society until “The People” evolve beyond Capitalism to a truly free and happy social existence. NSN appealed to an independent standard of fairness, justice, and compassion that I presumed still existed and functioned in the hearts and minds of many Americans, but I underestimated the degree to which the “conscience of the people” has been muted, twisted, and distorted by Capitalist ideology or propaganda. I now realize that “We The People”, even the best and brightest of us–Progressives–for example– are possessed by the Spirit of Capitalism to the degree that pretty much the entire country is either addicted to money-making, or unwilling (for fear of being labeled a “Socialist“) to confront and denounce the preposterous notion that we can have (for everyone) good healthcare, wages, education, environmental protection, housing, and foreign policy that are owned and operated for profit. I regretfully acknowledge that America is not ready for NSN, and although NSN is a modest—and far from radical or brilliant—modern political plan that significantly improves the quality of life for the vast majority of people, it is beyond the present VISION of “the people“, and it has been rejected or ignored by even the best and brightest Americans, so I’m shutting down the Campaign For A National Safety Net In America until more of us, including “Progressives,” understand and demand that “free enterprise” has no role to play in the satisfaction of vital needs for human beings.

The simple truth is that private enterprise should (at best) be banished to the margins of society, or confined to flee-markets, where people can compete and haggle, win or lose, if they so desire, about non-essential matters of life and death, but certainly not about the satisfaction of basic needs. Unfortunately, the American love affair with Capitalism still captivates “the people,” their Representatives, and the so-called Intelligentsia in this country (with too few exceptions to make a social difference at this historical time). It’s true that many, perhaps most, of the American people are on the right/correct side of many, perhaps most, of the important issues, but they are also overwhelmingly committed to the primacy of the private sector for achieving these social goals, so much so that when someone, such as myself, integrates these major social goods into the political call for a Federally mandated public program–The National Safely Net (NSN): 7 Point Agenda– then it starts to look too much like Socialism,” and it gets rejected or ignored, even by Progressives. The word “Socialism” is toxic in America, just like the “N” word that was used to viciously end all rational conversation and debate. The only way to take the hateful, emotional venom out of this term is not to run away from it, but to explain what it really is because the reality behind the word is something good and beautiful.

 

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Negative Progressives

Progressives, again and again, keep complaining about the super-rich, especially how little/unfair taxes they pay, and I entirely agree with this critique, but none of them, to my knowledge, will come out in favor of the National Safety Net (NSN) political proposal that would Federally mandate a minimum threshold of quality living for every American. It is one thing to properly diagnose the problem (that the rich have too much wealth), and another thing to publicly endorse a positive solution (of re-distributing the wealth so that everyone has a guaranteed decent and dignified lifestyle). Progressives, just like liberals, don’t like the gross inequality of capitalism, but they are unwilling to challenge this economic system enough to really do what needs to be done in order to properly correct this completely unnecessary and undesirable situation. They can’t bring themselves to say and support the idea that there is more than enough wealth in America to go around so that every citizen can and should have a safe and secure life. NSN solves the problem of gross inequality in America, but any serious challenge to Capitalism is labeled “Socialism,” and is rejected, or at least not openly supported, by Republicans, Democrats, Liberals, and Progressives. However, no Party or organization/ group can adequately address the worst symptoms of this society without offering a positive concrete alternative. NSN doesn’t claim to be the be all and end all for social improvement, but it’s a BEGINNING that breaks out of the blame game taking place within the established framework/ ideology: “earn a living through hard work or suffer and perish.” The starting point for real change in America is the recognitions that 21st Century Americans deserve a middle class lifestyle because we are all members of a very rich society, but don’t expect Progressives to recognize this simple and basic moral truth because that’s too “radical.”

Progressive Snails

The idea that basic needs for everyone can be satisfied through a competitive economy has not only been falsified (in practice) by history, but it is also impossible (in principle) because not everyone can be a “winner,” as anyone who has played the game of “Monopoly” knows. After Republicans succeeded in discrediting and disgracing the concept of a “Liberal,” more and more of the best and brightest political folks in America began to call themselves “Progressives,” continuing the political line that it is necessary and desirable to ameliorate the worst aspects of Capitalism, but these Progressives  have not defined and demanded a real safety net for the country. They are shaky and shady about what the satisfaction of basic needs means in a modern society. They don’t recognize that Universal Health Care, Free Higher Education, Living Wage, Peace,  Fair unemployment, Affordable Housing, and Ecological Integrity should not depend on the  success or failure of the marketplace, and that these social benefits belong to all citizens equally. It’s cowardly and hypocritical to want to take the rough edges off  Capitalism, as Progressives claim, without calling for (all  the essential elements of )  a strong safety net that ensures a decent and dignified lifestyle for everyone. Progressivism is morally and politically bankrupt because it doesn’t  take itself seriously enough to even advocate for the bare minimum of a safe and secure life for the American people. It’s not good politics for the 21st Century because it aims beneath what is  necessary, desirable, and possible in America. All explanations and excuses aside, Progressives are striving for so little, so slowly, that we need a new, bold, visionary political movement, and NSN is such a BEGINNING.

Beyond Democrats And Progressives

The same criticisms that Progressives are making against the Obama Administration and the rest of the Democratic Congress and Party could be and should be made against themselves: they lack Vision, or a comprehensive, long-range view of what they believe in, they don’t fight hard enough for what they believe in, and they are afraid of how the public will respond to the political call for big change.  In other words, Democrats and Progressives are weak about articulating and achieving an agenda that would greatly improve American lives. As evidence for this claim I present the following  facts: over the last year I submitted the National Safety Net (NSN) political proposal that federally mandates a guaranteed minimum quality lifestyle for every American–paid for by the filthy rich– to more than thirty of the top progressives websites and organizations across the country, and almost all of them  either did not respond, declined to publish/post, or refused to even LINK  on the grounds, mostly, that NSN is “unrealistic, unachievable in this political climate, too grandiose, premature…”  The fact that the best and brightest folks in America , many of whom regard themselves as Progressives, would find it utopian that the richest country in the world can and should provide a basic standard of living for everyone (in need) is strong testimony, I submit,  that the American intelligentsia is far behind the rest of the evolved world, and that those who now occupy positions of power and influence in this established “progressive” community are either unwilling or unable to lead us to a qualitatively better world NOW. What ‘s needed is a fresh, bold start outside the established Progressive Organizations, and NSN can play the  role of a new, visionary BEGINNING–assuming that there are  some American, anti-academic, anti-conservative process people, who want to get involved? If you’re willing to  raise your voice for the simple obvious truth that it’s obscene and morally unacceptable that some have so  much, while others don’t even have the basics–all ideological and strategic arguments for keeping quiet aside–then join the Big New Deal Of NSN Now .

Senator Sanders And General Petraeus

Even Bernie Sanders, certainly one of the most Progressive voices in the Senate, voted to confirm General Petraeus as the new commander in Afghanistan. Sanders called Petraeus a qualified and competent leader for this historical moment, even though Sanders knows that Petraeus is one of the architects of the failed Iraqi war, and even though Petraeus plans to continue this disastrous US war in Afghanistan. The big problem exemplified here is not that all politicians, including Sanders, are bad, stupid, or the same, but rather that even the best and brightest politicians in America, the so-called progressives, have become so preoccupied with strategy, so afraid to alienate or lose the support of people, that they no longer speak for, fight for, or vote for critically important moral issues.  The National Safety Net (NSN) political proposal, or the idea that every American is entitled to a (concretely defined) decent and dignified lifestyle, is one such moral imperative that entails ending America’s imperial wars, and  it is not really controversial or considered impractical (in principle) among the most intelligent and caring individuals in this country– for these folks realize that America could easily afford it– but still this fundamental moral idea finds virtually no vocal or active support within the “progressive” community because  this community  has at least a thousand different reasons why it believes  it is not strategically smart to  push for  such an idea at this historical moment. However, when the political leadership becomes afraid to demonstrate  basic moral leadership to the people, then we end up with good people such as Bernie Sanders voting to confirm General Petraeus, and a society  in which a lot of people don’t have enough for the basics of life, while others are filthy rich, but almost no one is willing to break the false, immoral, bankrupt political consensus (of Republicans, Democrats, and Progressives) that governs or guides  this country in favor of the new, bold, positive alternative of NSN. That’s pathetic politics by any other name.

Swim Or Sink In Oil

The crisis in the Gulf shows,  once again, how economy is being  played against ecology. Not only are many people who have lost their jobs because of the oil spill demanding “drill baby drill,” but many who have been, or soon will be, negatively  impacted by the spill are demanding that the oil industry keep operating, growing, and employing. Of course, it’s true that people have rents, mortgages, car loans, insurance, utilities, food, and numerous other bills to pay each month, and that individuals are going to do what they have to do in order to survive/sustain, even if it means risking their personal health and lives, as well as the health and lives of others, as well as the Gulf ecology, and the planet as a whole. This terrible contradiction between personal/family survival and the environmental well-being of the Gulf (and the Earth) could be resolved through the creation of a National Safety Net (NSN) that insures a government provided basic lifestyle for every citizen who needs it, for as long as s/he need it, but this simple and readily available solution (paid for by a tax on corporate profits and on the upper class) is not even being seriously considered by the Obama administration, or the Democratic Congress, which is not surprizing given the market-driven mentality of American politics. What is surprizing is that the so-called Progressives in this country are still not demanding , or supporting, a strong public safety net under middle class Americans, even as the country faces an entire regional collapse in which million upon millions of fellow citizens are sinking into poverty and desperation. There just doesn’t seem to be enough intelligence and courage in the country to see beyond the spirit of “you’re on your own, swim or sink,” to a vision of ” we’re all in the same boat.”

No Safety Net For The Gulf

Unemployment is high in America, much higher than the statistics show, and higher than is being reported, and the entire Gulf Region is facing economic collapse, and still it’s unpopular and unacceptable, even among “progressive” people, organizations, and websites, to call for a strong safety net ( such as NSN). Instead, “progressives” throughout this country are timid, or  lost in strategic considerations, and ignore the simple, obvious truth that no one in America needs to, or should, crash and burn in times of socio-economic crises. If people can’t find decent work, or if they are thrown onto hard times by dire circumstances, then of course society ( We The People) should support and assist them as long as necessary, as concretely defined by NSN,  and yet the fear of being labelled a socialist, and/or the compulsive force of a tyrannical American work-ethic,  mutes the voices of compassion and generosity. In its willingness to let tens of millions of fellow-citizens suffer and sink,  America shows itself to be a very sick society indeed. A healthy and good society would not hesitate to put a real safety net under all  its citizens because disaster can strike anyone, anywhere, anytime. One can only wonder how many casualties it will take–50 million, 100 million, 200 million–before enough of us, including “progressives,”  realize that we need laws and institutions, beginning with the creation of a National Safety Net (NSN), that secure a decent and dignified life for everyone?

The Independent Criterion of NSN

Whatever kind of economic system one favors–Capitalism or Socialism–the first and most important social objective, or social End, is the satisfaction of basic needs for everyone. The National Safety Net (NSN), with its Seven Point Agenda that clearly defines and demands a minimum level of quality living for all members of a given society, is an independent  moral requirement that governs, or should govern, all considerations and claims concerning the “best” society. In other words, NSN is the essential standard by which we can and should measure a society’s claim to be the “best” in the world. It is “better” for any society to have achieved a basic threshold of good living for everyone than for citizens to live in a society in which some people have too much while others have too little. American-style gross inequality, with no strong safety net, creates more jealousy, resentment, unhappiness, and unrest than can be compensated for by any amount of material goods and services. Primitive societies, arguably, that have not reached a stage of material development where they can secure and sustain all the members of their respective societies are still better off, better places to live, than modern societies that have reached a high level of development but refuse or decline to provide adequately for everyone. Modern societies that accept and adopt NSN as the independent criterion for the Good Life are optimal–I believe.

BP:What A Surprise!

It turns out that BP spent little to no money on safety concerns about deep water drilling. It seems that they are overwhelmingly focused on profits, so now we need congressional committees and hearings to fully reveal just how selfish and irresponsible they have been, and continue to be. What A Surprise that a big corporation would care a whole lot more about making money than it does about everything else!  How sad that the American people do not understand the consequences of an economic system that legally mandates money-making as the bottom line. This is the reason The National Safety Net (NSN)  does not enter into the debate between Socialism and Capitalism–namely, the country is not willing and ready to accept the logical outcome of this debate because it is ideologically bound to Capitalism. Instead, NSN simply clarifies and demands a minimum threshold of quality life for everyone. If Capitalism  provides this for all citizens, which of course it will not and cannot, then let it do so, or try to do so. NSN refuses to define its strategy and goals in terms of Capitalist possibilities and propaganda. It begins with the obvious self-evident truth that America is rich enough for everyone to have a decent and dignified lifestyle, and that everyone deserves at least as much. The National Safety Net is a bold, new, visionary political line that is very different from the major “Progressive” organizations and websites, which have become next to useless because people need and deserved a clealy outlined ( by the NSN Seven Point plan) good life NOW, but they are unwilling to say so, let alone actively push for it.

Good Riddance To Progressivism

The National Safety Net (NSN) Seven Point Plan would provide a decent lifestyle  for all Americans, but the major Progressive Organizations and  Websites must think that this is too much to ask for, or work for, because at least thirty  of the top groups (that I contacted–CommonDreams, TruthDig, The Nation, TomDispatch, PDA, for examples) refuse to post or even link with NSN, which just goes to show how out of touch they are with what really matters to Americans–namely, the substantive elements or ingredients of  everyday life. Progressives are so busy cutting the heads off  the Hydra of American Empire, and analyzing and strategizing politics to death, especially electoral politics, that they have forgotten or turned their backs on the obvious self-evident truth that there is more than enough wealth in this country to take basic care of everyone, and that it is perfectly rational and just that we as a country do this, and that the political leadership should demand it NOW. Unfortunately, Progressives ignore, shy away, or run away from this simple moral calling. They would rather stay negative, or point in the direction of abstract alternatives such as Jeffersonian Democracy,  than support a concrete political plan for a quality life for all US citizens. Since Progressives are unwilling or unable ( for whatever reasons) to recognize and support such a modest, yet fundamentally important social objective, then we need a new visionary movement (beginning with NSN) that is committed to the clear common good, and not afraid to say so and act so (unlike modern-day Progressivism that is lost in sophisticated arguments and strategies not focused on the basic goods and services of  daily life).