Want a Better America? We Must Become Better Leaders Ourselves

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Peggy Noonan and Magic Ponies…

A few weeks ago, I made a quick post about a column by Peggy Noonan in the Wall Street Journal about Americans—that’s you and me—and politics and “magic ponies.” With a new Congress coming in and the 2020 election already starting, it made sense to go into greater depth on this issue.

Noonan argues that Americans are voting for “magic ponies” like Trump and Obama based too much on emotion and not enough on their experience and judgment.

She is correct.

That failure to vote for wisdom and experience is a symptom of a much deeper and more threatening problem facing America. Facing us. Facing you and me.

And that problem is us. The problem is you and me.

America is United by Ideals, Not Blood or Ethnicity

Almost all nations in world history are grounded in ethnicity or tribe. You are Japanese because you are born Japanese. You are Tutsi because you were born in the Tutsi tribe.

In these nations, the people look to the rulers, the government, to solve their problems because those are the people who rule the nation or tribe. Its what they’ve been doing from the beginning. They are citizen-subjects of their ruling government

America is different. We are not united by blood or ethnicity. We are united by commitment to the American ideals expressed in our Declaration of Independence and Constitution.

In the American military and in our citizenship oath, we don’t swear allegiance to a king or ruler. We swear allegiance to “support and defend the Constitution.”

Citizen-Leaders Not Citizen-Subjects

Our politicians are not the leaders of America. We The People–you and me–are the defined leaders of America. We are not citizen-subjects of the government. We are citizen-leaders in our own nation.

That citizen-leadership goes way beyond the government. Through most of our history, We the People solved most of our problems using private associations. We formed non-profits, private associations and charities to tackle challenges like health care, education, homelessness and many other problems.

Tackling problems as private citizen-leaders does several important things. When we help others directly, we develop our own character, compassion and sense of community. All these are keys to Happiness in life.

When we are the leaders solving problems, we take ownership of the problems, investing ourselves in solving those problems. As citizen-leaders working through private associations, we solve problems more effectively, efficiently and with better response than the government can.

Finally, Americans have always been wary of a federal government that gains too much power and becomes tyrannical. Our Constitution is written to have three co-equal branches of federal government. The branches exercise checks and balances over each other, preventing any one branch from having too much power. That is designed to keep the federal government itself from having too much power and becoming tyrannical.

When we tackle problems ourselves, as citizen-leaders, we keep the power with the people, not the government. We prevent tyranny and maintain our freedom.

In his famous 1830’s book, Democracy in America, Alexis De Tocqueville tours America and notes this fundamental difference between America and Europe. In Europe, citizen-subjects are dependent on the ruling class and government to lead and do things for them. In contrast, Americans take leadership onto themselves, forming associations with other Americans to accomplish things.

Our Failure as Citizen-Leaders

Today, We the People, you and I, are failing as citizen-leaders in at least two ways.

First, as citizen-leaders, we are responsible for choosing the best representatives possible to manage our government day-to-day. Nevertheless, the media is filled with complaints about our government from all sides. We seem to be very unhappy with the representatives we choose.

The problem is, the representatives we choose are little more than a reflection of us–We the People.

It is very simple: if we are not wise, we cannot recognize and elect wise representatives. The representatives we elect are not going to be any better than the people electing them.

It is dishonest and disingenuous to blame our failure to elect the best representatives (politicians) on the politicians.

If we don’t like what we see, then it’s our fault. If we want wise leaders, we need to seek and recognize wisdom ourselves. The responsibility is on us.

Second and most important, we’ve largely abdicated our critical role as citizen-leaders in America.

Through our history, we’ve developed active, heroic and wise leaders who become good people by tackling problems big and small.

These leaders are united by a shared commitment to the Truths expressed in the Constitution and founding documents of our nation. That’s why we owe allegiance to the Constitution.

These leaders combine good knowledge and good character into wisdom. They are strong, resilient and compassionate. They set a good example as citizen-leaders and inspire those around them to greatness as well. These citizen-leaders recognize that neither they nor America has never been or will ever be perfect. Nevertheless, they call all of us to strive for greatness together serving each other.

These are the citizen-leaders in all areas of life who have made America an exceptional nation in world history, setting the example for other nations.

The Danger of Postmodern Tyranny

In contrast, our increasingly postmodern colleges, media and culture teach our young people that there is no objective Truth, only personal truth. They tell our young people that no one else is like them. No one else can truly understand their personal truth.

Our young people are taught to focus on their feelings, on how they have been oppressed, offended and victimized. They are taught to be outraged by this oppression and to leverage their outrage to demand things from others.

They learn that those who disagree with them are not worthy of respect. They are not human. They should be dismissed and even demonized.

They are taught that it is America herself that has oppressed, offended and victimized them. America is terrible and owes them.

This postmodern approach is deeply selfish because it focuses so much on personal truth, feelings and entitlement.

The emphasis on personal truth instead of shared Truth destroys our sense of community. It denies the shared Truths expressed in our Constitution and our founding documents. When we have nothing in common, when there is nothing that unifies us as Americans, we no longer have an American community.

Finally, our young people are taught that the government is only the solution to their demands—and to problems in general. This is so deeply ingrained in our education system that most young people don’t even realize that there might be alternatives.

When the government is perceived as the only solution and when people can’t persuade others to agree with their solutions, it becomes all too easy for people to use the power of the federal government to force their solutions on others.

And that is tyranny. It is profoundly anti-American because it is in direct opposition to our Constitution and the timeless Truths upon which our nation was founded.

As that happens, America will no longer be unified by our shared ideals as citizen-leaders. It will be unified by the brute force of a government exercising authority over its subjects.

You may get what you want from that government initially, but that will be short-lived. The governing elites will inevitably abandon you for what they desire and think best. Always, in the end, for themselves.

That is the battle we are in. That is why America is so divided. That is why we are so unhappy with our elected representatives.

We are abandoning our American heritage of being citizen-leaders coming together to pursue Truth, Happiness and Justice. We are engaging in an all-out battle to use the federal government to impose our will on others.

The Answer

So, what is the answer?

If we want a better America, if we want better representatives in government, then we need to clean up our own acts. As individuals, as communities and as a nation.

We need to reclaim our role as citizen-leaders. We must come together and reaffirm the Truths upon which our nation and Constitution are founded. We must ingrain those Truths into our young people. Remember, we are not united by blood or ethnicity, but by those Truths.

We need to form our young people into wise, compassionate leaders who seek Truth and Happiness together. As we know from earlier podcasts, their happiness depends on having high-quality, loving relationships with others. To be wise, we must form their knowledge and character through teamwork.

And to achieve any of that, we must develop our own leadership, wisdom and compassion. We can’t possibly form our young people into good citizen-leaders if we aren’t good, wise, compassionate citizen-leaders ourselves.

Why should we pursue this? Because becoming a better citizen-leader will not only put our nation on the right track but it will give you the best chance at happiness and success in life.

Remember, your happiness is based on high-quality relationships. When you are a better leader, you will have a better relationship with yourself and with your family. You will have better relationships at work and with your fellow citizen-leaders. It will make you more successful in all aspects of your life. At work, at home and in your community.

What are you doing today to improve your own character, knowledge, compassion and teamwork so that all of us can live happier, more successful lives?

What are you doing in your family and at work to develop and practice wisdom? What are you doing to encourage your fellow citizen-leaders to develop wisdom and leadership themselves?

What are we all doing to teach, live and reinforce the kinds of timeless Truths that are embodied in our Constitution? What are we doing to encourage wisdom, character, servant leadership and compassion in our young people so they can be great citizen-leaders?

Last, I know that I have a long way to go developing my own wisdom. So, from me to you, from one We the People citizen-leader to another, I give you my pledge to work hard to develop my own judgment and character so I can be the best co-leader with you. I pledge to actively listen in good-faith. I pledge to avoid demonizing people with whom I disagree. So together, we can form good young people and build the best America possible.

Maybe we can unite around that.