Egalitarianism
America’s North Star
The Declaration of Independence states, “…. all men are created equal”. This egalitarian ideal is at the heart of who we are as a people, and it must remain so. Those words represent the North Star by which we must guide ourselves.
The Founding Fathers said, “men”, and we can continue to give them the benefit of the doubt by assuming that they meant that term in the larger sense of all mankind; or we can do the right thing and update the wording to “… all men and all women are created equal” or “… all people are created equal”.
In America, we currently uphold our egalitarian ideals through the sacred concept of Free Enterprise. When we say that all people are born equal, we do not mean that their daddies have the same size bank accounts. We are not Communists nor Socialists who want to level every playing field with oppressive government programs designed to redistribute wealth. If we were Communists or Socialists, we would find ourselves on the wrong side of our own history. Nothing is as important as staying on the right side of history; and if we violate our founding principles, we will surely find ourselves on the wrong side of history.
At birth, Americans must find themselves with no arbitrary cultural impediments to success, and they must enjoy equality of protection under the law throughout their lives.
As a whole, let Free Enterprise be the wind in our sails, and let the helmsmen and women steer a course towards the North Star of Egalitarianism.
We can’t be equal when the rich get tax cuts and the poor get poorer and the greedy capitalists destroy the planet. “Free Enterprise” is a bourgeois scam on the oppressed masses. It is high time we replace those capitalist stooges with progressive helmsmen and women who will…
1. Provide free daycare and preschool.
2. Forgive all student loans and provide free college for all.
3. Provide a guaranteed living income for all.
4. Enact a federal tax on wealth in all its forms.
5. Tax income at 100% for those “earning” above $80,000 per year.
6. Nationalize the oil companies and ban fossil fuels.
7. Nationalize the radio frequencies, internet and all forms of communications to be sure that all political propaganda from the right is balanced by progressive truth.
8. Pay reparations to all exploited and disadvantaged peoples.
9. Replace automobiles with mass transit.
10. Heavily tax meat and all animal products and subsidize vegan diets.
Recently on NPR, EJ Dion said, “The Social Contract is broken. We need a new Social Contract.” Here is a good start.