by Devan Sipher.
It seems like it was a lifetime ago that Michelle Obama urged us to rise to the level of our better angels. I don’t know if she still subscribes to the premise, but she hasn’t disavowed it,
Heading in a different direction, US Rep. and former Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia recently exhorted Democrats to match Marjorie Taylor Greene’s behavior. I understand his frustration with his shameless colleague (as well as his eagerness to go viral for a news cycle). But if Garcia were to succeed in setting the bar at Greene’s level, I’m fairly confident she’s capable of lowering it.
The impulse to fight fire with fire is seductive, as is the desire to beat MAGA leaders at their own game. But any such action would inevitably result in a race to the bottom. And I do mean the bottom.
For fifteen hundred years, Christianity has defined immorality through seven deadly sins: lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride. Whether one ascribes to the Christian faith, or any organized religion, one can recognize these traits as representing human weakness.
What’s extraordinary is that the current President of the United States blithely embodies all seven sins, and in a stunningly short time, he has redefined them as virtues. Worse, children across this country are being encouraged to emulate him—and them.
Citizens in a functioning democracy can disagree about political goals and methods, but not about decency. There’s no political or economic rationalization sufficient to justify abandoning principles that have survived millennia. When “they” go low, we cannot go lower, because there is nowhere lower to go.
So the only way is up.
It may sound corny or naive, but the antidote to cruelty and greed is kindness and generosity. If our goal is to salvage civil society, then it’s our obligation to sustain it. If we want our children to grow up in a world that values integrity and humility, we must all participate in a firewall of civic virtue. Not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because the alternative is the obliteration of our humanity and our nation.
John F. Kennedy famously said “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” We are witnessing that precept being turned on its head. Instead of using our municipal and financial resources to protect those least fortunate, we are being encouraged to solely gratify self-interest. In this new world order, compassion is for losers and those who toady to the biggest bully will receive the greatest reward.
If that isn’t the world we want to live in, if it isn’t what we want to teach our children, then it is up to each of us to set an alternative example every day. It’s not just who we donate money to or what causes we champion. It’s what we say and do at the grocery store and the soccer field. It’s the respect we show our neighbors and the patience we give customer service representatives.
I’m not suggesting that this will solve our problems. I know that many of us want to march in the streets, but many others want to hide under the covers. What I’m saying is that this is something everyone can do. We will still need people defending the Constitution in our courts and people defending the truth in our news outlets. But every one of us can contribute to protecting our community. We can all be the heroes that we’re seeking. We just need to aim high.
Devan Sipher can be reached at Unmuted.SMDP@gmail.com.
