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Taking care of democracy is a housekeeping task but larger and more complex than any other house maintenance project. It requires diligence and ever-vigilant tending or else it falls into disrepair — even collapse if the big issues and the small details are not prioritized. Setting up a “to-do” list of projects from the most simple to the vastly complex is the way to allocate the available funds and energy to get the tasks done. To gain factual information on which to make accurate assumptions.
But underpinning the practical issues is an ethical imperative that should reflect shared values. Kindness, compassion, open hearts to those who come to our shores, acceptance of all religious beliefs, belief in the fluidity of gender with no labels, trust in females, laughter at stupidity. It is not just the facade of our living structure but the foundation construction from bottom to top that determines whether our house will stand the howling winds of shouted discourse, the torrential rains of misinformation, and the ever present blinding of The Sun King.
What we believe and value should provide the focus for our resources. The rest is just noise and hollow rhetoric. Sure the gas tank needs filling, although not with fossil fuels supported by dinosaur brains, and the groceries will be getting more expensive through punishing tariffs. But if there is no justice, no accountability, no laws that protect us all, I fear demonic despots will determine everything that we do: from the person that we marry to the car that we must drive to the dog species we are allowed to take for a walk in our own diversified neighborhoods.
The house of democracy is expensive because it sits on precious lands and requires thoughtful stewardship, non-violent behavior and the leadership of honorable persons, not convicted felons. Where’s that carpenter to build back better?
Rochelle Newman
Bucksport
