A few months ago, I blogged about the mission and goals of the Tea Party and the 9 Principles and 12 values of the 9.12 Project.
Today, I I still feel that these goals and values are really good. But my thoughts and feelings about the Tea Party are still very liquidy.
Wade with me, if you want, through the murky sludge of my thoughts and back-and-forth questions going on in my head. Maybe someone out there can help clear up the water a bit for me.
So, the mission and values look very good….on paper. But, what about in real life?
I think the Tea Party has done some good for our country-it has woken up a lot of people and worked to hold elected officials accountable to their words. On a national level, this was very necessary.
On a state level, things are different and I’m learning that what might work in Washington does not necessarily have the same affect on a state or local level. All politics is local and the closer it is to us, the better chance we have of making a real difference because it is easier to build real relationships with local and even state leaders than it is with national leaders who become very removed from their constituents back in a land they once knew.
Another thing I’m learning is that the values and mission of the Tea Party type of groups have good intentions. However, the approach and techniques used in real life settings do not always mirror these values very well.
Words. Word choice and the tone in which they are delivered in are so important. And just because something is true, doesn’t mean we have liscence to be nasty or rude about it. Yes, the truth is that many legislatures have been corrupted and it is the sad truth. We still should treat them respectfully though. But when our representatives and government stop representing us and only represent themselves, people are going to be upset…or at least they should be. There are many Americans who are rightfully disgruntled, discontent, and angry. These are feelings that are real and justified.
Still, I think if the Tea Party and others like them who are feeling this way are really going to have a positive effect, they are going to have to learn how to find a way to use their emotions to inspire a positive change, and not just a mudslinging-name-calling-soap-box-rant.
But how? This is something that I’ve been struggling with in my own personal life and efforts. When you are dealing with people in power that seem to care very little about the everyday person’s individual dignity and rights, how do you change that…without tearing down their dignity and integrity in the process? How do you address these issues construtively without letting your blood boil over?
I hear and see the word ‘polarizing’ a lot lately. Even though there are obvious difference of opinions and philosophies about politics in our government and country, it seems that anyone who picks one side over the other is ‘poloarizing’ the country. Isn’t it already polarized? Then I have to wonder, if we focused more on the common ground instead of on our disagreements, wouldn’t some of our values end up getting compromised somewhere in that process?
I know, in broad terms what the answer is. Love, Kindness, Humility…The trick is how to apply those virtues and values to every specific situation. We need people who are strong and courageous and willing to stand up for truth. Is it possible to do this without ‘polarizing’?
I’m curious how other people would like to see our government and country be restored without becoming a huge angry protesting mob. It doesn’t have to come to that, right?
