The topic of our discussion this month was Do We Learn from History? (Part II)

Our emphasis was Leadership in Democracy. We started our (online) chat with a discussion of a section from our website, thefutureofdemocracy.net, entitled Leadership in Democracies.

The People are the ultimate authority for democratic governments, but people can act or vote in a way that is not in their best long-term interests. The best democratic leadership evokes a vision that includes the needs of all individuals. Effective leadership strives to clarify these democratic values and then works to forge a path toward implementing them.

In democracies we know that we don’t want an authoritarian regime making the major decisions that affect our society and lives. All revolutions have been founded on this principle. But once the revolution is over, determining the direction in which we want to move becomes more of a challenge.

Firm, yet sensitive guidance is needed by those who would lead us. Viable new ideas always must be respected and incorporated into our path. Great leadership maintains the essential vision of democracy while considering alternative paths toward its fulfillment. Democracy is most viable when incorporating the best contributions that each of us is capable of making.

We continued with a discussion of the book Three Days at the Brink by Bret Baier. The three days referenced in the title are the Tehran Conference of World War II attended by Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin to plan the final push of the war, culminating in the June 1944 D-Day attack of the beaches of Normandy. Much of the book focuses on Roosevelt’s background, going back to his cousin Teddy and his 1905 inaugural speech made just as the US was becoming the most influential international power.

We have become a great nation, forced by the facts of its greatness into relations with other nations of the earth… We must show not only in our words, but in our deeds, that we are earnestly desirous of securing their good will by acting toward them in a spirit of just and generous recognition of their rights.…
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Yes, that was given by a Republican, who saw the essential international role of the US as one of leadership working in supportive interaction with other nations.

The leadership style of FDR was emphasized throughout the book. In his inaugural address in 1933, and in his later “fireside chats,” Roosevelt emphasized the need for a spirit of cooperative effort by all Americans to work together to move past the devastation of the Depression.

If we are to go forward, we must move as a trained and loyal army willing to sacrifice for the good of a common discipline; because without such discipline no progress is made.

His firm leadership began by created a myriad of programs collectively called the New Deal, that included Social Security and the WPA (Works Progress Administration), although the US did not fully come out of the Depression until the massive spending forced by World War II, which then greatly reduced the entrenched equality that had gotten worse before the War.

Along with Churchill, FDR is credited by many as inspiring his nation in its effort to save democracy. He exhibited a firmness in the face of adversity that inspired the American people despite a number of shortcomings that included the internment of Japanese Americans and failing to take action to save Jews attempting to escape extermination by the Germans.

By contrast we currently have the most devastating pandemic in over 100 years assaulting our country with no clear leadership providing a coordinated plan for action. Each state is left to fend for itself in deciding whether to issue stay-at-home rules and to compete with other states for essential supplies in absence of strong leadership. Despite early warnings, the deadly potential of our current pandemic was ignored by our President until it could be denied no longer, and we all are paying the consequences.

Please check out our blog at renewingdemocracy.org

The topic of our discussion this month was Do We Learn from History? (Part I)

Wyndy Knox Carr, a member of our group and a book reviewer for the Berkeley Times, presented some key points from the Hanna Arendt’s book The Origins of Totalitarianism, which established her reputation when published in 1951. Arendt escaped from Germany during World War II, immigrating to the US in 1941. She attended and famously wrote about the 1961 Eichmann trial which she chronicled in her 1963 book Eichmann in Jerusalem, A Report on the Banality of Evil. The following is Steve’s summary of her presentation. A collection of Wyndy’s articles can be found here.

You might find many themes from The Origins of Totalitarianism relevant in today’s world.
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1. One theme of the book is the destruction of the integrity of the individual in totalitarian states. “Racism tends to destroy the body politic of the nation. … Racists … denied the great principle upon which national organizations of peoples are built, the principle of equality and solidarity of all peoples guaranteed by the idea of mankind,” pages 158-161. Arendt ties this to the soul-sapping labor practices of the Industrial Revolution and Automation Revolution where workers were considered little more than adjuncts to machines on the production line.
2. A similar theme was the “pessimistic mood” by workers in Europe from the 1800s on as a result of the Industrial Revolution, amidst “decadence” by some before and after WWI, page 171. This included “Contempt for liberal individualism, the ideal of mankind and the dignity of man,” page 235.
3. Within countries considered democracies there has been decay of the lives of some and “the formation of a new natural aristocracy,” page 173. This included persecution of American Indians and slavery that ignored democratic principles, page 177.
4. A guidebook of imperialism was the 1932 ‘The Government of Subject Races,’ by Lord Cromer. This was applied in South Africa, Algeria, Egypt and India. It provided guidance about how to retain dominance over races that were considered inferior while avoiding any semblance of rule of law. Random actions were seen as the most effective way to retain power over others considered less than equal.
5. The idea of the superiority of one group over another foreshadowed later totalitarian groups that considered “the other” as inferior beings, pages 225, 264-5. Modern nations that consider themselves democratic also have demonized nations they considered not equal to themselves as they have invaded countries supposedly in need of their help such as Iraq and El Salvador. They also have exploited the natural resources of these countries, particularly those possessing oil.
6. Economic globalization followed the domination of colonialism and imperialism by Western Nations in areas such as Africa, page 206.
7. Another theme is “Normalizing” the desire of the young to join “The Mob” by organizers of totalitarian regimes. “These men began to tell the mob that each of its members could become a lofty all-important embodiment of something ideal if he would only join the movement. Then he no longer had to be loyal [to country] or generous or courageous,” page 249. This is similar to the political cults or “mobs” that expect members to follow what they are expected to believe rather than come to their own conclusions based on facts, which is essential for democracy.
8. “Parting from absolute values” of the intrinsic worth of human beings, pages 188-9, encompassed in the phrase of the US Declaration of Independence that “All are created equal.” Dehumanization of people is related to maintaining their economic status far below that of the wealthy.
9. In a “State ruling through an administration that applies decrees…power becomes the direct source of all legislation,” page 243. The role of Congress, elected representatives, and the courts diminishes as executive orders take sway.
10. Totalitarianism preaches globalized hate and fear. People are either “in” our “out” of those groups considered deserving of human rights. This is done by whim or based on the random actions of those in charge. Stalin’s ruthlessness borne of Bolshevism led to his contempt for the Russian people, page 249.
11. The book addresses the tragedy of those who are “stateless and minorities” after WWI in Europe and Central America, fleeing dictatorships, gang and police violence, and sexual trafficking. “Without ties to and the protection of a Sovereign State, those groups (Jews, Slovaks, Rumanians, Poles)… (become) “superfluous” people (pages 261-262) considered “inferior races, page 310.  “Inflation…Unemployment…Migrations…” are three roots of hatred, page 267. People become divided into Us, Them and It.
12. Would-be totalitarian rulers usually begin their careers by boasting of their past crimes and carefully outlining their future ones: “The propaganda of totalitarian movements which precede and accompany totalitarian regimes is invariably as frank as it is mendacious…The attraction of evil and crime for the mob mentality is nothing new,” page 307. Statements come to mind like “I could fire a gun on Fifth Avenue” or “They’re all rapists and murderers” or “Lock her up.”
13. Totalitarianism includes instilling fear in people about telling the truth or refusing to commit illegal or unconscionable acts, and then prosecuting whistleblowers. “It is this absoluteness of movements which more than anything else separates them from party structures and their partiality, and serves to justify their claim to overrule all objections of individual conscience…” (page 249)

Our February topic was Polarity (in the USA and even in the White House)
 
Rob Katz led a discussion on his original paper on the origins of our national polarity.
 
Notes toward an Understanding of Why U.S. Political Parties Are So Polarized
 
The following is a non-comprehensive account of why US politics is so polarized today. Much more can be said about this topic. I also acknowledge that I come from a liberal Democratic perspective and a conservative Republican might have a different take on this history.
 
To begin with, the framers warned about the fracturing of the body politic through what they call “factions.” They initially had a dim view of political parties. But the truth is that all representative democracies have political parties, including the U.S. almost since its inception. The framers themselves helped to found parties, and the fighting between the Federalists, to which John Adams and Alexander Hamilton belonged, and the Democratic Republicans founded by Jefferson and Madison, was highly contentious.
 
Nonetheless, our political parties were not always as politically polarized as they are now.
 
1940–1980: Age of (Relative) Consensus
 
Considering our historical divisions, the political consensus achieved during and after World War II was exceptional in American history.
 
World War II as a Unifying Force
 
It shouldn’t be underestimated how the unity the country experienced in the war extended beyond the war. Senators and Congressmen who had fought and sacrificed in World War II were more inclined to put country over party. As Ira Shapiro said in The Last Great Senate: “Men who fought at Normandy or Iwo Jima or the Battle of the Bulge weren’t frightened by the need to cast a hard vote now and then. Seeing Paul Douglas or Daniel Inouye or Bob Dole on the Senate floor living with crippling injuries or pain, and the other veterans fortunate enough to have escaped unscathed, set a standard of courage and character for those who followed them.”
 
Moderate/Liberal Republicans and Conservative Democrats
 
During this period, the parties were not ideologically homogeneous, and there was considerable overlap between them. For historical reasons, the Republican Party had strong moderate/progressive wings. The party of Lincoln, the Radical Republicans, and Teddy
 
Roosevelt had within it a strong sector that viewed government intervention favorably to improve people’s lives and protect them from capitalism’s excesses. The fact that political leaders living in big cities chose the Republican Party as an alternative to corrupt Democratic political machines (famously, Fiorello LaGuardia against Tammany Hall) helped to reinforce this progressive tendency within the Republican Party. So too did FDR’s resounding reelection victory in 1936, which led establishment Republicans to basically accept many of the New Deal reforms, such as Social Security, the minimum wage, regulation of the stock market and banks. On the other hand, there were many conservative Democrats, particularly in the South, due to the lasting legacy of slavery and racism.
 
Period of Robust Economic Growth Shared by the Middle Class
 
The period of widely shared prosperity in the 30 years after the war helped support a consensus for relatively progressive policies.
 
1980–2016: The Consensus is Undone
 
Civil Rights
 
The extension of Civil Rights to Blacks in the South and elsewhere, as well as other minority groups, although an extremely positive development, led to the gradual migration of the South from the Democratic to the Republican Party. Civil Rights legislation was initially enacted with bipartisan support (another example of post-War bipartisanship) but starting with Nixon’s Southern Strategy in 1968, Republicans made a conscious attempt to pursue White voters, using proxies for race like law and order, the crack epidemic, welfare queens, and other dog whistles. As late as the 1990s it was still possible for Democrats to be elected to statewide office in Texas, Arkansas, and Tennessee. No more. (But there is beginning to be a resurgence among Democrats in parts of the South, partly due to northern migration and increases in Latino vote.) The migration of conservative Democrats to the Republican Party helped make it a more uniformly conservative party.
 
Race still remains a potent and divisive issue. One question asked by pollsters to gauge racial attitudes in 2010: “In recent years, do you think too much has been made of the problems facing Black people, too little has been made, or is it about right.” Among Tea Party s supporters, 52 percent said “too much,” compared to 19 percent who were not Tea Party loyalists.
 
The Reinforcement of Free Market Ideology
 
Starting in the 1970s, with the famous Powell memo, business groups that had accepted to some degree government regulation and labor unions became increasingly hostile toward any incursions on corporate power. Business and conservative groups like the Koch brothers spent billions to attempt to discredit New Deal reforms in favor of tax cuts for the wealthy and deregulation. Corporate funded think tanks sought to minimize the role of government in the economy, and justify privatization. Public choice theory, for example, denied essentially that there was anything that could be identified as in the public interest, and argued that government entities were merely out to advance their own private interests of getting reelected and increasing their budgets. Free market fundamentalism became the new dogma, and both parties to some degree bought into this doctrine. After the overwhelming defeat of the old New Dealer Walter Mondale to Reagan in 1984, many Democrats were eager to move towards some imagined center. But whereas the Democrats would appoint judges and regulators who would honestly police big business, and balked at huge tax cuts for the rich, the Republicans increasingly had no such scruples and would become a party completely in step with the wishes of its corporate donors. The influence of wealthy donors became even greater after Citizens United allowed greater corporate cash in political campaigns in 2010.
 
It therefore seems incorrect to propound a symmetrical theory of polarization, i.e. the Democrats moving further to the left, the Republicans farther to the right. In fact, at least on economic issues, Democrats moved closer to the center in the Clinton and Obama years, while Republicans move toward an ever more doctrinaire conservative partisanship. Democrats who thought moderate, market-based proposals would garner some Republican support in Congress, e.g. the Affordable Care Act modeled after Mitt Romney’s reforms in Massachusetts, and cap and trade legislation to address climate change, were instead met with virtually unified Republican opposition.
 
The Rise of Social Issues
 
Starting in the 1960s, and increasingly in the 70s and 80s, social issues, and the “culture war” became increasingly prominent, with polarization around noneconomic issues such as abortion, gun control, “religious liberty,” law and order and affirmative action. Sometimes, as in the latter two issues, apparent policy divides thinly concealed racial resentment. (See above.) Furthermore, in contrast to WWII, the Viet Nam War was deeply divisive, exposing a fault line between counter- and traditional culture that still runs through our society. The fact that social issues rose to prominence at the same time as free market ideology is no coincidence. The Democratic Party to some degree abandoned the role it had assumed during the New Deal as the party of the working class, and was not willing or able to counter the trends in globalization and the weakening of organized labor that led to wage stagnation, increasing inequality, and a weakening public sector. Thus, both parties became to some degree (though the Democrats less so) instruments of corporate power, and voters increasingly distinguished between the parties on the basis of social issues rather than economic ones. These social issues tend to be fought out in absolutist terms and contribute to polarization, e.g., abortion is mass murder, and gun control violates precious Second Amendment rights. Republicans have long realized that they can’t win elections based on their free market ideology alone, which is not of obvious benefit to most people, and so have used social issues to capture voters not inclined by their economic interests to vote Republican.
 
The Rise of Cable News, Social Media, and Other Polarizing Media
 
Much has been said about this. In the 1980s, the Fairness Doctrine was eliminated by the Reagan administration. This led to the rise of ideological talk radio (e.g., Rush Limbaugh) capable of galvanizing conservative opinion. Then there was the ascendancy of cable news, which led to the rise of Fox News serving as a megaphone for the conservative Republican line. By the late 90s, what David Frum called the “conservative entertainment complex” was in full swing, helping to drive the discourse in the Republican Party. The pundit/entertainers like Bill O’Reilly and Limbaugh were interested in stoking conflict and provocation to attract a loyal audience, were contemptuous of compromise, and were far more interested in entertaining than in having a working government. Their influence among the Republican base made pragmatic compromises by conservative politicians far more difficult. These trends only got worse with the rise of social media, and websites like Breitbart. The left also got its own websites like Vox etc. Now, people could live in a news world that would entirely enforce their worldview. People were entitled not only to their own opinions but their own facts. People would inhabit news environments in which the idea that their opinions were right and that of the opposition wrong was constantly reinforced, and the listener/viewer/reader was continually being told, subliminally, that they were better than groups that thought differently from them.
 
The Gingrich Revolution
 
As conservatism took over the Republican Party, and a new generation of politicians who’d grown up in the conservative movement took command, the culture of compromise in Congress gave way to a new type of partisanship and intransigence. Newt Gingrich introduced the practice of having Congressmen go home to their districts over long weekends, so that they would not socialize with members of the opposing party. The contrast between Ronald Reagan, who talked like a conservative but was willing to make deals and compromise with Tip O’Neill and the Congressional Democrats, gave way to the likes of Mitch McConnell, who declared in 2010 that his main priority was to make sure that Obama was a one term president, which he sought to accomplish by opposing any legislative initiative Obama proposed.
 
With the triumph in the Republican party of free market ideology, social conservatism, the influx of conservative former-democrats, and demands of unswerving party/ideological loyalty, moderate Republicans were increasingly crowded out of their party. They either retired, or were defeated in primary or general elections, or switched parties (e.g., Arlen Spector).
 
2016 and Beyond
 
The Rise of Trumpism
 
Trump did not challenge Republican orthodoxy when it came to tax cuts for the wealthy, gutting environmental and consumer protection regulations, and appointing judges that were pro-business and conservative on social issues. He did depart from that orthodoxy in his skepticism of free trade, which he shared in part with the left, and an anti-immigration ideology tinged with racism, which he shared with the radical right. That kind of nationalism, together with his own confrontational personality, manipulation of broadcast and social media to rile up his base at all costs, plus his contempt for truth, constitutional limits on his power, and of the rule of law, has dramatically increased polarization.
 
The Democratic Party: Back to its Roots?
 
Although it is much debated whether the Democrats should move dramatically leftward, or more moderately so, it seems the real question is whether the Democratic Party will return to its New Deal roots: Will it be a party that focuses on government intervention to improve the economic well-being of the average person? The Democrats success in 2018, emphasizing the protection and improvement of the Affordable Care Act, in contrast to Republicans who sought to eliminate it, is perhaps a sign of what is to come. Democrats can again shift the focus from social to economic issues, as well as the environmental issue of climate change that voters increasing view as a threat to their wellbeing.
 
One model is Sherrod Brown, the senator from Ohio who won in 2018 by 7 percentage points in a state that Trump carried by 8. The state has a strong strain of socially conservative voters and Brown has been consistently liberal on abortion, civil rights, and gay marriage. But he has also been progressive on working-class issues, advocating renegotiation of trade deals, support of organized labor, and talking about the dignity of labor. He was able to persuade enough working-class people who cared more about economic issues than social issues that he was genuinely on their side in order to win his reelection handily.

When is impeachment justified?

As we all know, President Donald Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives in December and is being tried in the Senate to determine if he should be removed from office.

At our January meeting, we reviewed the perspectives of the US founders about impeachment, but we started with the Farewell Address of George Washington, which was delivered to Congress before he left office in March, 1796. Many people are aware of Washington’s skill as a general, but not of his eloquence as a speaker and as an inspiration for his generation and those to come. Washington was perhaps the only US President solely devoted to the principles on which the country was founded and not beholden to any political party. He refused a third term to ensure that the country would remain a nation of principles and laws, and not centered on a single ruler or dynasty. During his presidency, political parties already were in place starting in 1792 — the Democratic Republicans under Jefferson and Madison, and the Federalists under Hamilton. Washington implored the nation to above all remain attached to “the love of liberty with every ligament of your hearts.” He minded Americans to work together to preserve their freedoms as “You have in a common cause fought and triumphed together; the independence and liberty you possess are the work of joint counsels, and joint efforts of common dangers, sufferings, and successes.” Above all, he considered it imperative to put principles first in “carefully guarding and preserving the union of the whole.” He was particularly concerned about partisanship and wary of political parties: “Let me warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of party generally. … A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent it bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.” I think we can agree that, for the most part, this warning has been ignored throughout our history with the all-consuming presence of political parties rather than devotion to the principles of our founding “common cause” — continuing right up to our own time.

The idea of impeachment only came up as the Constitutional Convention was winding down in 1787. George Mason of Virginia was concerned that the president could become a tyrant and that there would be no way to remove him from office under the provisions in the current draft that only included “treason and bribery.” What about, he asked, “attempts to subvert the Constitution?” His solution, which was widely debated, was to add the phrase “other high crimes and misdemeanors.” Others thought that the impeachment power could become a tool for weakening the presidency. Governor Morris of Pennsylvania and others feared that the threat of impeachment would make “the Executive dependent on those who are to impeach.” Other fears were that the president would bribe electors to gain office or become subservient to a foreign power. The idea of impeachment for abuse of power was borrowed from English law with which the founders, having been English citizens, were familiar. Ultimately the provision was passed 8 votes to 2.

The Federalist Papers were written by three founders — Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay — in support of the Constitution which was written in 1787 and being sent to the colonies for ratification. In Federalist No. 65, Hamilton stated that breaking a law is not necessarily an adequate reason for impeachment, but some acts may lead to justification for impeachment, whether violation of the law or not, such as “abuse or violation of the public trust.” Hamilton questioned whether impeachment trials might be conducted by bodies other than the Senate, such as the Supreme Court or an independent body. The language agreed upon by the founders, after much debate, was: “The President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” (Article II, Sec 4) Hamilton argued that despite the impreciseness of the procedure, the Constitution should be ratified.

Only three presidents have, to date, been impeached, but none have so far been removed from office. Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868 for obstructing reconstruction efforts after the Civil War by Congress "to protect the rights and safety of black Southerners.” (Madison and Mason on Impeachment, Erik Trickey, smithsonian.com, October 2, 2017) Bill Clinton was impeached in 1988 for lying to Congress about his alleged affairs. Richard Nixon resigned before a likely impeachment in 1974 for involvement in the Watergate scandal. And now Donald Trump has been impeached for Abuse of Power and Obstruction of Congress in December, 2019.

Stay tuned.

Our November topic was “Truth and Democracy.”

Our discussion focused on a recent book: Post-Truth. Post-truth is the view that all sides of an issue are equivalent, and that there is no real thing as truth. This has been used by climate-change deniers, and before that, those who sought to hide the effects of tobacco smoke and DDT.
 
Before our discussion we completed a little “Truth Quiz,” that had some silly questions and some more serious ones. The first question was: “What is the difference between facts and truth?” Answers by members were somewhat different but the general gist was that facts are verifiable events and truth is a more abstract idea subject to interpretation. The rest of the questions varied from simple observations (“Is the sky blue?”) to more historical issues (“Did Clarence Thomas harass Anita Hill?”). We focused not on what is “true,” but more on the process of how we arrive at our idea of what is true. For example, in the case of Clarence Thomas, how do we know what to believe? Are our conclusions based on presented facts in the same way we would evaluate evidence as a juror in a trial, or are they based on emotion, or something else?
 
A corollary, of course, is how people decide which politicians to support. Do we base our opinions of politicians on their parties, their personalities, or on principles? Or don’t we even know why we back some politicians over others? If we base our support on principles, what are the principles most keeping with democracy, and how do we hold our leaders to keeping their promises?
 
After an election is over, even if our candidate has won, our job is not over. In fact it is just beginning. If we believe in democracy we must monitor those in office to ensure that they are following democratic principles, particularly the most essential principle that “all are created equal.” Of course this is more easily said than done.
 
Some significant quotes from Post-Truth, by Lee McIntyre, 2019, by page number:
 
Page xiii. Facts and truth are endangered in today’s political arena.
 
xiv. Truth… is being challenged as a mechanism for political dominance. And that is why one cannot shy away from politics…
 
7. The greatest threat comes from those who have the hubris to think that they already know the truth, for then one might be impetuous enough to act on a falsehood….
 
10. What seems different in the post-truth era is a challenge not just to the idea of knowing reality but to the existence of reality itself.
 
13. Post-truth amounts to a form of ideological supremacy, whereby its practitioners are trying to compel someone to believe in something whether there is good evidence for it or not.
 
17. When a scientist put forth a theory, it is expected that it will be put through the paces of a peer review, attempts at replication, and the highest order of empirical fact-checking…
 
18. One of the most common claims made by those who do not like some particular scientific result is that the scientists who found it were biased.
 
20. Until a theory is absolutely proven, [some] believe, a competing theory could always be true. 21. In the 1950s, tobacco companies realized that they had a vested interest in raising doubt over whether cigarette smoking caused lung cancer…
 
25. By the time climate change became a partisan issue in the early 2000s, the mechanism of corporate-funded science denial was a well-oiled machine.
 
30. A 2013 survey of 4,000 peer-reviewed papers that took a position on climate change found that 97 percent agreed with the position that global warming was caused by human activity.
 
34. The selective use of facts that prop up one’s position, and the complete rejection of facts that do not, seems part and parcel of creating the new post-truth reality.
 
40. [In an experiment] 37% of (participants) yielded to the majority opinion. They discounted what they could see right in front of them in order to remain in conformity with the group.
 
45. Motivated reasoning is the idea that what we hope to be true may color our perception of what actually is true. 
 
48. The “backfire effect” …when partisans were presented with evidence that one or their politically expedient beliefs was wrong, they would reject the evidence and “double down” on their mistaken belief.
 
51. [Research shows] …even the strongest partisans will eventually reach a “tipping point” and change their beliefs after they are continually exposed to corrective evidence.
 
62. …[A]ll ideologies are an enemy of the process by which truth is discovered.
 
77. By allowing “equal time,” the media only succeeded in creating “false equivalence” between two sides of an issue even when there were not two credible sides.
 
81. The goal of objectivity is not to give equal time between truth and falsehood – it is to facilitate the truth. 
 
95. With no form of editorial control over what is now sometimes presented as “news,” how can we know when we are being manipulated?
 
105. Fake news is not simply news that is false; it is deliberatively false…
 
106. All seven American intelligence agencies have concluded that the Russian government was involved in hacking the US election…
 
118. Facebook and Google now account for 85 percent of all new online ad revenue in the US.
 
119. The answer [to fake news] is flooding it with actual news…
 
134. Questioning the science behind global warming “is now a required practice for Republicans eager to play to an emboldened conservative base…”
 
145. If you interpret a period of cold weather as evidence that climate change isn’t happening, and if millions of other people agree with your point of view, then climate change is a hoax.
 
157. The media stopped telling “both sides of the story” about vaccines and autism once there was a measles outbreak in fourteen states in 2015….As of July, 2014, BBC decided to stop giving equal airtime to climate change deniers.
 
162. Whether we are liberals or conservatives, we are prone to the sorts of cognitive biases that can lead to post-truth. One should not assume that post-truth arises only from others, or that its results are someone else’s problem.
 
163. If you are getting your information primarily from one source…it is probably time to diversify your news feed…..The strength of science is that it embraces an attitude of constantly checking one’s beliefs against the empirical evidence, and changing those beliefs as one learns what the facts are.
 
169. Just as the water will continue to rise on the homes of Coral Gables Florida – whether the residents believe it or not – so will the consequences of post-truth creep up on all of us unless we are prepared to fight them.
 
170. Richard Feynman: “For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled.”

Our October topic was “Moving Past our Biases to Find the Best Leadership for Democracy.” We can choose to (1) remain stuck in partisanship and blame the other side or (2) identify the underlying principles of democracy and work together to implement them via constructive dialogue. Do we take the first step or wait for those with whom we disagree to bridge the gap?
 
We discussed the question: “Is an objective search for the best candidate possible?” The hope is to avoid getting caught in our views so that respectful dialogue becomes impossible. If democracy is about equality, do some of us think that our views — and therefore we — are superior to others? What works best is to avoid personal blame and to focus together to identify the most essential principles of democracy and how best to move toward them.
 
In our day we have gone far beyond the US founders. Our understanding of how to implement equality has evolved. The Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, written after the Civil War, guarantees “equal protection of the laws.” Most democracies have moved closer to the fulfillment of equality in their laws and personal interactions. We have more fully — but not totally — included women and previously excluded minorities as equals in areas such as voting and employment. But within our democracies there still are those who resist the extension of equality to those they consider less than equal to themselves.
 
The US founders unified to create the Constitution that still guides us, then some engaged in personal attacks that made them enemies. Adams and Jefferson split over the meaning of the Constitution and didn’t speak for twelve years. Everyone now knows about the enmity between Hamilton and Burr. Our inability to work for the common interest continues to threaten the continuance of democracy itself.
 
Here are some of the priorities mentioned by our members that they would like in a leader. You are welcome to send in the qualities you seek using our contact form.

• Ability to communicate beliefs forcefully
• Ability to think clearly as to where he or she stands on all relevant issues
• Appreciation of others
• Authenticity — same person in public and private
• Believes in democracy and separation of powers
• Commitment to equality
• Empathy
• Enforcing and following the Constitution and laws
• Fairness
• Good communicator
• Grounded
• Kindness
• Rationality
• Sanity
• Sense of humor
• Strength
• Trustworthiness

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​​In an attempt to keep our discussion focused on the issues we reviewed a form from the US Federal Courts called “Guidelines for a Civil Discussion” which outlines the procedure used by courts for allowing the presentation of conflicting viewpoints in a civil manner. These procedures mandate that all must listen to the evidence presented by both sides. Our own discussion nonetheless got a little hot at times due to the divergence of opinions expressed.
 
We welcome viewpoints from Left and Right in an attempt to work toward respectful dialogue that is the essence of democracy. People on each side often accuse the other of not listening, so we must attempt to understand how others think if we ever are to bridge our gap. Here are a few highlights from a note we received from someone from the right end of the political spectrum that we read at our meeting:

​We continued work on our Candidate Evaluation Form, which will be completed and available next month.
 
We discussed the book Biased, by Jennifer Eberhardt, who is a researcher at Stanford and does workshops on the subject. Here are a few quotes that are relevant to our discussion.
 
BIASED, by Jennifer L. Eberhardt, 2019, page numbers are cited.
 
26. We reserve our precious cognitive resources for those who are “like us.”
 
31. Categorization is a fundamental tool that our brains are wired to use. The categorization process applies not just to people, it works on all things….we label the beliefs we have about social groups “stereotypes” and the attitudes we have toward them “prejudices.”
 
33. People tend to seek out and attend to information that already confirms their beliefs.
 
39. Studies confirm that biased parents tend to produce children that are biased as well.
 
200. Spending time with groups you’re determined to dislike can actually translate in a biased mind to validation: I thought these people were stupid, now I know they are.
 
202. When we’re faced with a common enemy, research has shown, our biases can temporarily dissolve by the urge to band together and serve.
 
211. Researchers have identified key elements that can improve school performance. They rest on a basic principle: Students need to feel individually valued and respected, connected to both the people and process involved in their education.
 
212. It has long been clear that constructive feedback is a powerful tool for promoting children’s intellectual development. And academic growth requires both praise and criticism.
 
236. We all have multiple selves that we carry around with us. Which self dominates — to guide our thoughts, feelings, and actions — is, in part, a function of the situations we find ourselves in.
 
281. Trainers stress the prevalence of bias for a good reason: They want the people they’re training to engage with the topic in a personal way. It’s difficult to stay engaged if what you are hearing is accusatory and threatening.
 
292. We’ve learned that diverse groups are more creative and reach better decisions, but they aren’t always the happiest. There are more differences, so there is apt to be more discord.

At our September 9 meeting, we discussed the book The Shadow War by Jim Sciutto, CNN anchor. There is a serious underground cold war going on between Western Democracies and the two nations that try to dominate them: Russia and China. This war has the potential to totally undermine our democracies. A few quotes from the book, including page numbers, follows. For a more complete outline contact Steve via our Contact form, or better yet, get the book.

Page 7. The events of the last decade showed two consistent and disturbing lines: growing Russian aggression and consistent Western delusions about Russian intentions. The same pattern is discernible regarding China, which was launching its own inaugural battles in another, arguably more existentially dangerous Shadow War on the United States.
8. US officials, led by President Barack Obama, accepted China’s assurances that Beijing would dial back its cyber theft of US corporate secrets, malicious activity that remains rampant and aggressive today.
9. Obama’s dismissiveness would be replaced by President Donald Trump’s own rose-colored view of Moscow and Putin.
11. Hybrid warfare … a strategy of attacking an adversary while remaining just below the threshold of conventional war … using a range of hard and soft power tactics: from cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure, to deploying threats to space assets, to information operations designed to spark domestic divisions, to territorial acquisition just short of formal invasion.
14. On every front, “the big lie” is an essential part of the strategy. With the invasion of Crimea and Ukraine, that meant denying that what were obviously Russian troops were indeed Russian troops. With meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, that meant spreading fake news via Russian news outlets and social media to sow doubts about Russia’s role and to amplify those US politicians who echo these doubts, including President Donald Trump himself.
39. Russia has carried out (ever) more aggressive attacks on the West, opening new fronts in the Shadow War. Many European diplomats and officials reacted with particular alarm to Russian’s poisoning of a former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter on the streets of Salisbury, England, in March 2018. The weapon, which police believed was smeared on the doorknob of the Skripal’s flat, was the Russia made nerve agent Novichok.
44. [Chinese] hackers sent so-called phishing emails to employees of the target company [Boeing] designed, as the FBI explained “to appear as if it came from a colleague or legitimate business contact.” If the recipient clicked on a link contained in the email, or opened an attachment, an “outbound connection” would be established between the victim’s computer and another in China under the hacker’s control. The hackers would then install malware on the victim’s computer, allowing them to control the computer remotely and — more alarmingly — explore the company’s entire network.
74. [2014 shooting down of a passenger plane by Russian separatists in Ukraine] It catalyzed the Europeans to come together on … tough sanctions.
94. The US and its European partners remained largely in discussion mode as Russian forces solidified their grip in Crimea [2014] and made further territorial gains in Eastern Ukraine.
112. Southeast Asian nations, fearful of being bullied or overpowered by Beijing, have generally welcomed America’s role in defending freedom of navigation in these waters.
145. Space is a new and dangerous front in the Shadow War. Russia, China, and other US adversaries are rapidly developing and deploying offensive capabilities in space designed to undercut the US enormous advantage in the space realm.…
159. Today, everything from bank transactions to stock trades to traffic lights depend on GPS time stamps to function.
186. Russia’s hack of state department systems began, as most cyber intrusions do, with Russian hackers identifying and exploiting a weak link … the State Department’s unclassified email system.
194. One typo and one click, and Russian hackers had taken another step inside the Democratic Party — gaining free rein through tens of thousands of emails to and from the man running the campaign.…
199. US intelligence agencies were not fooled. They had hard evidence of a connection between WikiLeaks and Russia.
202. On October 7 … US intelligence agencies publicly named Russia as the culprit for both the theft of Democratic Party materials and the strategic release of those materials over time to influence the election.       
209. The former NSA deputy director believes the US response to Russia’s interference in the 2016 election was weak, therefore inviting future Russian cyberattacks.…
211. Russia has penetrated other critical infrastructure such as power grids, telecommunication systems, and water treatment systems.
230. Russia’s new submarine deployments are a direct challenge to NATO countries to which the US has treaty obligations to defend in the event of war.
234. President Trump is the first American leader since the alliance’s founding to publicly question America’s commitment to defend NATO allies if they are attacked.
245. Most Americans alive today have grown up in a world in which American military dominance is unchallenged and unchallengeable. That period is over. Both China and Russia have steadily and rapidly expanded their military capabilities with the intention of neutralizing the US military advantage as well as effectively barring the US from projecting military power inside their respective realms of influence.…
255. National security officials and policy makers recommend more punishing sanctions. These could include sanctions on whole sectors of the Chinese or Russian economies … Chinese state-run banks … Russian banks.…
260. Russian fake news during the 2016 election found fertile ground in the far corners of the far right, before migrating to larger conservative platforms, and sometimes, right to the US President.…
262. Many US officials believe that educating the US public about these information operations is as important as — or even more important than — any high-tech cyber tools.
274. Ultimately, the Shadow War may be won or lost on the basis of a shared mission — both within the US and among Western Allies. … “The best way to defend against this surely is to have a much clearer concept than we do of what we represent. … Our leadership ideally should be capable of articulating the values of liberal democracy and in language you can easily understand.”
280. Each act of aggression and its aftermath showed both enormous boldness on the part of Moscow and Beijing and plodding equivocation by the US. And the uncertainty of the US response seemed to fuel the next provocation and power grab. Russian and China clearly had a strategy. The US and the West did not.

​We also launched our Candidate Evaluation Sheet for the current Presidential candidates. This is based on the QUALITIES WE SEEK IN A LEADER that we completed last spring. The current grid still is in its early stages, but is reproduced below. It might still be altered as we see how it works. The categories are explained below the grid. We completed one candidate, Elizabeth Warren, at our meeting, and will work on the rest in teams as there is time over the next two months.

At our June 2 meeting we discussed our expectations for leaders in light of the current presidential campaign for the 2020 election and the debates that begin this month. We also spent some time on the Mueller Report that pointed out much of the behavior of our current President that we hopefully can learn from. We found it a challenge to express those qualities that we seek in a leader because it is easier to express what we don’t want than what we do want. We welcome your ideas to make our list more comprehensive. Over the next year we will review all major candidates and determine how each lives up to the criteria we have set. The names of candidates will be placed on a chart and each will be scored according to their performance in the following areas.
 
QUALITIES WE SEEK IN A LEADER

1. Advocates a free press. Understands that free speech is essential to democracy even though being criticized.
2. Appeals to young voters. Displays vigorousness, energy and fresh ideas for the challenges of a changing world.
3. Authentic personality. Values that are in tune with the democratic principle of respect for the rights of all.
4. Awareness of the need to combat climate change. Advocates measures to protect the environment.
5. Backs upward mobility for those who have fallen behind. A history of advancing the vision that all are created equal.
6. Belief in a balance of power. Respects the division between equal branches of government.
7. Believes that all are entitled to health benefits. Promotes single payer health care.
8. Commitment to the nomination of judges who uphold the principle of the Constitution to
   “Promote the General Welfare,” not political partisanism.
9. Diplomatic skill in foreign relations. Well thought-out policy based on team input. Works with Congress and allied nations to confront countries that threaten international peace and security.
10. Divestment of personal business interests to avoid the appearance of profiting from public office (Emoluments Clause of the Constitution).
11. Electability. Clearly expresses workable thoughts and ideas that appeal to a broad spectrum of people.
12. Emotional appeal. Genuine compassion for others. Evokes feelings as well as thoughts.
13. Experience at political leadership. A proven track record of working with others toward common goals.
14. Humility. Understanding that one person can’t know everything and that the best policies are created by a consensus of experts.
15. Integrity. Seeking to serve others rather than be served.
16. Intelligence. A record of creating innovative solutions to difficult problems.
17. Regard for the independence of government agencies that serve the public (FBI, CIA, Federal Reserve and others) while providing oversight to prevent abuses.
18. Respect for all. Provides genuine leadership in advocating for the value of all human beings regardless of belief or background.
19. Stands for the democratic principle of equality, not for personal gain by any person or group.
20. Transparency. Having nothing to hide. Releasing tax records so that integrity is not in doubt.
21. Understands the importance of separation between church and state.
22. Unifies rather than divides. Advocates discussing and working toward common goals within our nation and between nations.
23. Upholds the concept of freedom for every individual. Respects the right of all to do as they please as long as they don’t injure others.

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On April 1, 2019, our topic was “The Effects of Globalization on Individuals and Democracies.” Our discussion was based mainly on quotes from the book: Can Democracy Survive Global Capitalism? by Robert Kuttner.

Kuttner’s main idea is that the growth of globalization in trade and finance has contributed to increasing inequality in nearly all Western countries, accompanied by a deterioration of human dignity. This has led to a surge to the right among frustrated voters and discontent among growing numbers of individuals in democracies that threatens to undermine democracy itself. “The fact that far-right backlash is occurring in nearly all Western nations at the same time is no coincidence….It is a common reaction against the impact of globalization on the livelihoods of ordinary people.” (Page xvii)
 
Of course globalization is not new. There was long-distance trade on all continents even before there were countries, and this continued as nations were formed in early civilizations such as Egypt and Greece. Trade is based on the desire of people in most societies for items that they cannot themselves produce. They create products and/or services that will be of value to their trading partners to exchange for the items they want. An example is the voyages of Marco Polo to the Orient to obtain spices and silk which were traded for linen and woolen cloth. Money — often in the form of beads or precious metals — was used to represent value and facilitate trade only after trade already became a way of life.

There were many economic downturns in Europe and the Western Hemisphere from the time of the founding of colonies in the New World.  Downturns often were contagious because economies were connected by trade which made them interdependent. The aftermath of World War I led to blame and reparations imposed by the victors, which then fed the resentment of those defeated and contributed to another war thirty years later. After World War II, the economies of these same countries were stable because of international agreements to work toward greater prosperity and the guarantee of human rights and dignity. The lessons of the Great Depression also were contained in legislation and programs designed to prevent the dangerous speculation that led to that great downturn.
But the lessons of the Depression and World Wars were ignored by leaders — particularly in the US — who ignored the needs of the average person and unleashed a new surge in speculation that led again to growing inequality starting in the 1970s. “In the past four decades, the economy has turned viciously against ordinary working people.” (Page 2)
 
The main concern of corporations is, of course, profits and the greatest profits often can be made by shifting the work force of a company to countries where labor is cheaper. This leads to other people losing their jobs or being forced to work for lower wages. Generations of families that once expected their children to have improved living standards now are seeing their lifestyles stagnate or deteriorate. Many live from one paycheck to the next, cannot afford a college education or training that leads to greater prosperity, and are unsure of having enough funds for retirement. “Between the 1960s and the current era, US employment in manufacturing declined from over 25 percent of total jobs to just 8 percent…worker productivity more than doubled, but manufacturing wages stagnated….From Carter to Obama, small token programs made little difference to these devastated cities and regions. And these were precisely the locales that supported Trump and breached the supposed blue firewall of the Democrats.” (Page 191)
 
Democracy is about recognition of the dignity and needs of the average person, and democracy has failed many who no longer see that it works to their benefit. Simply voting is no guarantee of human rights — it only is one limited aspect of a well-functioning democracy. When leaders fail to address the real needs of those they serve, people become understandably upset and vote for someone new in the hope that their condition will improve. But when that person or party also fails them it sets up a vicious cycle, and many become disillusioned that there ever can be a way out.
 
In 1999, the protections of the Glass-Steagall Act that prohibited banks from engaging in speculation were terminated by a Republican Congress working in concert with a Democratic President. This allowed banks to move beyond making loans, to put the money of depositors into speculative investments. Huge returns were made by banks and others who participated in high-risk investment schemes. Few expected the real estate bubble to collapse, which of course it did, beginning in 2007, taking the economy with it. Many people no longer could afford mortgage payments that had gotten to unrealistic levels based on speculation and the belief that the market could never collapse. This is similar to the stock market bubble collapse that led to the Great Depression in the early 1930s.
 
In 2008, what became known as the Great Recession took the stock market down to less than one half of its previous level. Many people lost their homes because of payments that were beyond what they could afford, and unemployment jumped to 10%. Barack Obama easily won in November, as George W. Bush and the Republicans were blamed for the downturn.

A number of measures were put in place to stop the economy from going into a full depression. These included The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, which the US Treasury used to purchase $421 billion in troubled assets (and eventually recovered its money with a bit of interest), The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was an effort to save jobs by investing in infrastructure, energy efficiency, and providing assistance to the unemployed. A number of other actions were taken to pump money into the economy and fund small businesses by easing many of the country’s securities regulations. But all of these failed to address the losses and economic stagnation of many, especially in the Midwest, to this day.

“By 2016,” according to Kuttner, “the US was importing about three dollars of manufactured goods for every dollar it exported…. The trade deficit in goods in 2016 was $347 billion with China alone.” This of course has a considerable impact on jobs and wages in the US.

Kuttner is not against the use of tariffs when necessary. “Democratic nations could and should use policies such as tariffs to limit the damage to their own systems and to encourage trading nations to have at least minimally decent labor and human rights protections.” (Page 210) 

The tax avoidance dilemma created by most large corporations by shifting their headquarters and official tax base to small compliant countries has increased the tax burden on individuals who do pay taxes: “With higher taxes, and lower benefits to show for them, the social contract tilted further against ordinary working people.” (Page 219) Yet corporations and the wealthiest individuals, through their lobbying, were still able to force through tax breaks for themselves that further increased inequality. “What dragged down the economy was not a lack of business confidence caused by deficits. The culprits were flat wages, mortgage foreclosures, financial losses of overly indebted households, and traumatized banks.” (Page 220)
 
→What We Can Do

As the US founders emphasized, the most important factor in maintaining democracy is an informed citizenry. Most people who are adversely affected by economic downturns cling to their political parties or heroes without understanding the most basic principles required to maintain a sound economy. Thus politicians cater to the idea that fixing blame will solve our economic woes rather that proposing realistic solutions. In schools and our everyday conversations, basic economic principles need to be discussed, such as (1) The tax burden needs to be distributed according to income, including corporations, as it was after World War II, to reverse the continuing trend toward inequality; (2) Our tax money needs to be invested in job training and infrastructure to rebuild the middle class; (3) This will benefit all as more people have greater incomes and spend money which fuels the economy; (4) International agreements must guarantee a decent wage for workers in all countries which, by the way, will greatly improve the problem of immigrant flight toward the more prosperous countries. We should support politicians who show that they really are interested in improving the economy — and lessening inequality — by promoting these principles in their legislative records as well as their campaign speeches. 

This month we discussed the role of education in maintaining democracy, not just for children, but also for adults who hopefully continue to learn throughout their lives.

We discussed readings from Steve’s The Future of Democracy; Democracy and Education by John Dewey; and an article by Eleanor Roosevelt entitled “Good Citizenship: The Purpose of Education.”

Here are some of the questions we considered:


What Is the Role of Education in Democracies?​

In addition to skill development, the ultimate educational goal in democracy is imparting a viable idea about what works and what doesn’t to further the interests of the greatest number of people. In democracies, though all are flawed, human and technological progress far exceeds that of countries governed by undemocratic means. In undemocratic societies, values are dictated from the top and therefore less likely to inspire innovation.


How Do We Best Educate Children to Participate in Democracy and to Continue That Participation Into Adulthood?​

The ideal of democracy, which is Greek for “government by the people,” is that every human being is valued. That means that the potential of each individual is encouraged by the education system, with the goal of equal treatment for all. Education that contributes to democracy keeps this perspective in mind.


What Are the Attributes of Good Teachers and Effective Teaching That Contribute to the Quality of Lives of Future and Current Citizens and Voters?​

Good teaching moves students toward a framework of understanding that promotes growth in skills and constructive ways of interacting with the world. An effective teacher is a model for effective communication who meets students at their current level of understanding and builds confidence by introducing tasks that move toward greater comprehension and effectiveness in the world. This is done not just by instruction, but by engaging each student as an individual whose views are to be valued.


Is There a Core Attitude or View That Can Be Imparted to Students so That They Maintain Both Confidence and Competence Throughout Life?​

The best teachers express faith in the ability of their students to succeed, which greatly affects their self-confidence. But students also need guidance via incremental lessons and tasks at a level that allows them to succeed, and then builds skills and confidence with gradually greater challenges. Students need a safe place to make mistakes and learn from them.


What Is the Relationship Between Basic Skills and Greater Understanding for Lifelong Learning?

Basic skills are of course important — reading, writing, and math for example — but when students see the relevance of those skills to their lives it increases their level of understanding and ability to apply their skills in the real world. Learning based on creative projects that considers student interests engages them and sets a pattern so that they feel comfortable implementing their skills throughout their lives.


What Is the Difference Between the Education Systems in Democracies and in Autocracies?

In democracies, education ideally focuses on developing each person’s potential to contribute creatively to the innovation needed to move society forward. Education also prepares students for ongoing respectful dialogue with others that is required in a society where all are considered equal. Democracies work toward including people of all backgrounds in the opportunity to learn. In autocracies, education focuses on ideas and skills that do not contradict the views of authority. Original thinking and the thrust of innovation is limited.


What Is the Relationship Between Emotional and Intellectual Development?

When students are fully engaged in learning, both their minds and emotions are involved. There is a sense of excitement as new discoveries are made by both the individual and group. A good teacher encourages the thrill of discovery by students as they attain skills. This attitude then is brought into their ongoing learning process as they move toward adulthood. But our thoughts and actions often are dominated by fear of failure rather than clarification of a direction and the means to move toward it.


What Is the Role of Truth in Education in Democracies?

We all continually seek greater understanding of our world and ourselves. But what is considered true is different for different parts of the population and changes from one generation to the next. Some ethnic and religious groups are less tolerant than others of variation from their values. It took centuries for science to convince us that the sun doesn’t circle the earth. Understanding that the worldview held by the vast majority of people — including each of us — is limited and subject to change opens us to continued innovation and improvement in our ideas and inventiveness. Effective education moves us further from prejudice and closer to the truth, although we are unlikely to ever arrive at an absolute truth. An important purpose of education is to allow us to navigate the myriad points of view with which we are confronted in an effort to best parse the truth and determine how to act based upon our growing understanding.


How Does Education in Democracy Encourage Greater Independence?

At its best education can move children and adults further in the direction of independence by training them to consider the views they encounter without needing to fully believe them. We can communicate our best ideas of what is true while still are aware of the limits of what we know, rather than just repeating what we believe to be truth.


What Can We Do to Move Toward Greater Democracy in Education?

We can become involved in democratizing education in a number of ways. Those who have children can attend conferences and parent association meetings to support teachers in respectful interactions with children that encourage them to think and create. When possible, we can choose schools that promote these goals. When considering colleges, we can encourage children to consider schools that promote learning how to think rather than what to think. And as adults, we can set an example for democratic ideals by continuing to pursue learning by (1) opening our minds to those around us and their ideas and (2) encouraging meaningful dialogue that focuses on moving our organizations and nations toward the democratic ideals of respect for every human being.