The Reality-Based Party? Part XXXVIHere's
another group that believes that changing the words around will get folks to vote for the Democrats.
To hear some people tell it, the problem with the Democratic Party is that the political left no longer knows what it believes. A young graduate student named John Paul Rollert says these doubters can find their answer on the Web.
Rollert, a political activist who says his aim is the long-term revival of progressive politics, is one of the leaders of an effort called the "Principles Project," which recently completed an online convention designed to define and promote what Democrats believe.
Six weeks of e-mail debate and balloting ended earlier this month with "A Declaration of Progressive Principles." It is posted at www.principlesproject.com.Typically, what was left out is more revealing that what stayed in:
During one draft, for instance, participants were invited to weigh in on whether to change a statement that "America must be a leader in the building of global institutions that protect the vulnerable, promote liberal democracy, and improve the health and welfare of all people."
One option was to change "a" to "the." Others thought it sounded less unilateral to drop "leader" altogether and say that "America must join with like-minded nations." There was considerable debate about how much to emphasize a "strong military."
The final statement declared: "America's security requires an effective military and a commitment to enduring alliances, but we must remember that America's true power is found in its wisdom as well as its strength"; and "America must join with other nations to build global institutions that protect the vulnerable, promote democratic self-government, and improve the health and welfare of all people throughout the world."No surprise there; the Left can't acknowledge that America is the leader among nations. Also gotta wonder about the political correctness of using "America" as a shorthand for the United States; don't we constantly hear that Brazilians are Americans too?
