Building the Agenda

The agenda is the list of things, the topics, you think we should be thinking about and doing something about. Here’s a short list I think about:

a.      Public Education: excellence for each student at their level of readiness

b.     Public Education: commitment to help each student throughout their life and support their needs appropriately; adaptability to self and change for their good and that of society; well into their adult life span

c.      Foreign Affairs: people to people ought to rule our path forward; goodwill among all peoples and peace throughout the globe are the twin objectives. Now to find the people and methods to make this happen; this is not an American globe, nor a Russian one; it is a globe for and of all peoples everywhere; share the trust; be generous; be proactive; a peaceful world benefits each and every one of us

d.     Role of Government: government does the work we cannot do for ourselves: research health, science and social issues to make things better; maintain order among us and diligently pursue a shared, quality of life among us all

Just about every other issue imaginable comes from these four topics. If I missed something, we can add it to the list or sub list in time. Frankly, these four are core issues that drive much of everything else.

I say that, because even among those who would normally agree with me on many issues, some of them do not trust government, schools, even education. They say education is indoctrination. I say that is not education; that is propaganda and the teaching of it.

Education to me is the unfolding of a person’s ability to know and interact accurately with his/her surrounding reality. To know one’s self is to also understand one’s environment. None of us are alone; we are one of billions; we must know how to get along with others. And we must learn how to be uniquely ourselves without taking anything away from another living being.

History is our story – yours and mine and everyone else’s. It is a running documentary of events and interactions of peoples in time. What that documentary means will always be open to analysis, research and probing for truth and meaning. It will often mean different things to different people at different times. It is not just the unfolding of meaning to me, or to you; but to everyone else as well. The timelines of that meaning are different as well because of the endless unfolding of the timeline itself. In this moment you understand X; in the next moment your understanding may have changed. For me as well. And so on.

Propagandists attempt to sell their version of truth to you for all time. It never changes. It always holds its position relative to everything else. Well, that should be the largest clue for you and I that we are hearing propaganda and that it is likely false.

If your education is not free and open ended, it is not education; it is indoctrination. No doubt there are those who teach in this manner. My best teachers did not act this way. They pulled from me my thoughts, my observations, my intellect in making judgments of truth and logic. That’s how I learned about the world. You too?

We need to be certain that all of our kids learn the open-ended way as well. This is the doorway to exploration and discovery that will find the most and best for each of us. And our society and global community. This is the path to universal inclusion, too. Think about that. Let it sink in deeply.

A peaceful world requires attention to inclusion and adaptability to different cultures. We are not the only people on earth. We share this planet with everyone. If we can make things better for those less fortunate, we should do so. If war is the only way to maintain order, we need to find a better way. Inclusion creates massive alliances to maintain order. Alliances come from trust and friendship. Reaching out and embracing each other builds those alliances that matter.

Isn’t it time we focused on these core issues to improve on our world experience? And counter/resist those who have noisy opinions and propaganda?

 I think it is time. You?

January 10, 2018