Who Are We as a Country? Sally Yates Reminds Us Once Again [View all]

[peggysue2]

Sally Yates in a USA Today Op-Ed suggests we return to First Principles as a path forward in our current abnormal and alarming political climate. She directs our attention to a single sentence, the Preamble to the Constitution. With notes:

“We the people of the United States” (we are a democratic republic, not a dictatorship) “in order to form a more perfect union” (we are a work in progress dedicated to a noble pursuit) “establish justice” (we revere justice as the cornerstone of our democracy) “insure domestic tranquility” (we prize unity and peace, not divisiveness and discord), “provide for the common defense” (we should never give any foreign adversary reason to question our solidarity) “promote the general welfare” (we care about one another; compassion and decency matter) “and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity” (we have a responsibility to protect not just our own generation, but future ones as well).

Love this woman!

And I agree that in times of stress and genuine danger to the country, reminding ourselves of our core values and demanding those in power to respect and serve those values is of utmost importance. The means speaking out, getting politically engaged and supporting our democratic institutions, countering the caterwauling attacks on the free press, the FBI, our intelligence services, our diplomatic corps, our judicial system, our electoral system, etc. It means standing up for our immigrant neighbors and friends, pushing back against blatant racism, ethnic hatreds and sexism.

And our most fundamental principle must be protected: The Rule of Law.

It means becoming the Americans we want to be—never perfect but always better.

Kudos to Ms Yates. We need to be hearing more of this, daily reminders. Because there’s just too much to lose.

Full essay here:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2017/12/19/what-kind-country-we-speak-out-core-american-values-sally-q-yates-column/951828001/