Why Progressive Living?

To hear the corporate media account for it, the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression (call it the "Repetition of History" Depression) is primarily a matter of irresponsible American consumers taking out bigger mortgage loans than they could afford.

This account would be amusing if those responsible for fabricating it weren't the agents of the greatest lapse of journalistic integrity in US history.

Though Americans haven't been told this in no uncertain terms, it's time someone did — so we will:  this crisis is symptomatic of nothing less than the outright failure of the prevailing approach to "capitalism".  It is perhaps best thought of as the American equivalent of the collapse of Soviet "communism."

Not very surprisingly, the most influential school of economic thought of the 20th century had, and still has, nearly everything wrong. 

What is that school of economic thought? 

It could be called the school of laissez faire capitalism, which would emphasize its continuity with the Great Depression that followed the stock market collapse of 1929.  The differences between the causes of that collapse and our current crisis are, after all, superficial.

It could be called the David Rockefeller school of globalizing economic thought, which would emphasize both its key architect and its intimate connections to that process.

It could be called the corporate media's school of economic thought, to emphasize that it has been nourished and well-protected by the corporate mass media.

It could be called the Wal-Mart school of economic thought, to emphasize its few beneficiaries:  the Walton family, and a handful of others like them.

It could be called the Reagan school of economic thought, to emphasize its political implementation by crony Republicans (and some Democrats) over the last 30 years.

It could be called the Ayn Rand/Alan Greenspan/Milton Friedman school of economic thought, to emphasize its connection to the intellectual featherweights who have provided ideological fig leaves for it.

It could be called the Clarence Thomas/Samuel Alito school of economic thought, to emphasize the connection with radical, anti-democratic, activist judges who eviscerate the Constitution to protect its institutions and practices.

It could even be called the Rush Limbaugh/Fox News/Wall Street Journal school of economic thought, to emphasize the fact that although it has now lost every shred of intellectual and moral legitimacy, those wedded to corrupt economics are not about to call it quits - or admit their guilt, or relinquish their cold deathgrip on economic and media power.

But call it what you may, this school of self-serving economic superstitions is, like "communism," best thought of as a social cancer.

Dissecting out this social cancer will not be an easy task — nor is it something that can be accomplished in one or two presidential terms.  Laissez faire economics, along with its institutions, is entwined with virtually every aspect of American life.  One has only to think of the immense "bonuses" still being paid out to the black hats at our banking and financial institutions.

Then too , most of the very worst politicians in America remain in office, undisturbed by the 2008 election cycle, and funded by business, banking and financial interests that never go away in any election cycle. 

But if engrained corruption is not easily removed, at least there are far more successful models of economics and governance at hand that provide a clear picture of where we should be steering ourselves — if only we can clear our minds of the childish superstitions foisted upon us by the plutocratic mass media.

Among these models is the example provided by a single small country:  Norway. 

Americans have been told that its many successes can all be accounted for by its discovery of offshore oil.  This, of course, is a typical corporate media absurdity, crafted to conceal embarrassing comparisons.  The Russians have oil, as do the Saudis, as do the Iraquis, and Great Britain also has offshore oil.  Obviously, none of these has come even close to achieving the enormous societal successes of the Norwegians.  (What successes?  They range from low rates of infant mortality to longevity, from press freedoms to freedom from political corruption, and continue to much else, including economic stability.)

No, what the people of Norway do have, to a degree that the citizens of no other country have had, is a clear-headed understanding that tremendous concentrations of wealth must be avoided at all cost, because concentrations of wealth lead directly to political (and media, and judicial) corruption.   

Accordingly, its financial sector is organized quite differently from that of the United States. 

However, we leave the further details of economic alternatives to discussion elsewhere.

What readers of Progressive Living should know is that they will consistently encounter here hard-headed realism and a practical emphasis upon what is actually known to work in economics, politics, and much else — a radical departure from the soft-headed fantasies of conservative thinkers whose hearts bleed profusely for war contractors and the greedy but shrivel to little black raisins where anyone else is concerned, and whose doctrines accordingly result in the impoverishment of the vast majority.  We also emphasize patriotism — another term for social responsibility — something lapel-pin patriots like George Bush and Dick Cheney pay lip-service to even as they exclusively seek their personal economic self-interest. 

Too, unlike conservatives, we'd like to see a strong America, a strength which can only begin with strong families — which requires greater prosperity for the many, and vastly less for the obscenely wealthy few.  (We think of the Waltons as suffering from wealthbesity, a malady which leads, inevitably, to democrasclerosis.)

Lastly, and again in strong contrast to conservatives, we emphasize the importance of values.  Greed, obviously, is not a value — Adam Smith and Ayn Rand be damned .   It is, rather, a central element — perhaps the obvious central element — in sociopathy, and it always has been.

And always will be.    

The reason we emphasize genuine values is because the most fundamental requirement of living a better life, and of building a better future remains clarity concerning them. When values play their proper role, they're like a compass that serves to guide us in the major and minor decisions that face us as we go through life. Values help us decide how to act by reminding us of what's most important; and our values also help us to understand when and why political change, and changes in our institutions are needed.

The best of all scenarios is when we have a clear understanding of our values, and we work to see those values realized through our political system and through our social institutions, so that they become instruments for advancement, instead of instruments of exploitation.  Americans did just that during the period known, appropriately, as the Progressive Era. So even as we move ahead, it can help to take an occasional look backward.

Again, we think most Americans, both liberal and conservative, are poorly served by politicans, corporate journalists, CEOs and bankers who place the economic gain of a few first and people and the values most try to live by last. It is this that has created, as it must, the elitist and deeply anti-democratic culture of corporate corruption that continues to plague our society.  Beyond the borders of our own society, it continues to contribute substantially to human misery worldwide.

So it is urgent that Americans insist that democratic principles and values find application in all of the institutions of our society. That's why everything that you'll find at Progressive Living is presented in light of the set of values that, after many years of reading and reflection, we think make the most sense and are most true to the spirit of democracy. To be more specific, when we discuss politics and civic responsibility, our point of view will be rooted in what is usually called Progressivism; and when the issues are more philosophical, our point of view will reflect the value system known as Humanism. If you don't know what those words mean, don't worry. It will become clearer as we go along. Or go ahead and have a look at the links here now, if you'd like.

Almost a century ago, in the events leading up to the economic crash of 1929, Americans found themselves in a similar state of political, economic, and moral crisis. The highly successful solution to that crisis, for social conservatives and social liberals alike, was Progressivism. (Which is why "conservatives" are busy trying to rewrite the history of, for example, the New Deal.) 

Restoring Progressive governance will require considerable change (which we emphasized here long before Barack Obama was known to anyone outside of Illinois).

If you happen to be so inclined, we'll tell you how you can help effect change. You'll find critiques of the media, government, corporations, and society here — but not just for the sake of criticism; again, we hope to do something to bring about a consensus, so as to lay the groundwork for reforms. Indeed, we provide a roadmap to an alternative form of governance. There are also many resources pertaining to values, everything from philosophy to world religion. Resources pertaining to Progressivism and Humanism are here too. Eventually, you'll also find information, tools, and advice that will cover the whole span of life, from childbirth to death, as well as proposed reforms for virtually all social institutions, all in a humanistic perspective. This reflects our belief that perhaps the best way to begin to change the world is to live one's own life ethically. 

To get a better sense of the site content, you can proceed to the site map.  Or, to better understand how all of the individual pieces of site content fit together, you can go to a diagram that lays out the overall site architecture (be sure to hover your cursor over each section of the diagram).   Although each individual piece of content has been written to stand on its own, we encourage new visitors to the site to have a look at both the site map and the site architecture.

Thanks for visiting!

The Editors,
Progressive Living