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A PIVOTAL CHOICE FOR AMERICA
The choice before America is not so much an economic one but one that is defined by the relationship of 'self' to 'other.' This is true both for individuals and for nations - whether to build relationships based on self-interest and competition, or on cooperation and unity with all.
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Today, a day after the withdrawal of two Republican candidates from the presidential field, we are left with only one Republican nominee who, in his world view, is focusing our national consciousness on a pivotal choice that needs to be made, the choice regarding the relationship of self to other, and of our national self to the world. Consideration of how we view ourselves in relation to others, whether separate and in a competitive struggle, or whether joined with them in our common humanity and in a unity of wholeness, is the choice before us now.
What is the message that has been brought forth by this presidential nominee and what is its essential purpose? Some are perceiving it consciously, but many are absorbing it without conscious awareness.
On the surface, it is an economic message which can appeal to the self-interest of each individual and the self-interest of a nation. Its premise, however, is scarcity, and its foundation the activation of fear and anger. It works through the belief that there is only so much wealth in the world and each of us must fight (ie. compete) for his/her share. This is the fundamental argument concerning our borders, namely, what is good for Mexican or Central American immigrants takes something away from American workers. Similarly, what sends money to other nations takes something away from America's wealth. There is a presupposition here that America's 'greatness' depends upon her being the wealthiest of all nations. The 'first' among many.
The perspective of self-interest and of viewing one group as pitted against another has been intrinsic to the viewpoint presented here. For this reason it has invited polarization to an extreme degree. It has capitalized on the fear that many feel concerning financial security, their own future, and the future of their children. It is a mentality that emphasizes self-protection and protection of American self-interest from all those who seek to take something from us.
Such a perspective is not only economic. It is philosophical and it is antithetical to spiritual realities that hold unity and love at their core. It is based on the belief that each one or each nation pursuing their own self interest in a competitive arena achieves the best end for all. It does not hold the promise of a better outcome for all through cooperation and through holding the common good as central, because it does not believe that human beings operate in this way. In this sense, and with respect to the core beliefs of many spiritual traditions, it devalues human potential and reduces what is 'human' to a common denominator that resonates with fear and self-protection. Such a view, in its extreme form, perpetuates the 'survival of the fittest' mentality. It perpetuates the struggle to 'stay on top.' It perpetuates competition as a way of life and eliminates from the picture the importance of love as the basis for cooperation.
Cooperation is not a fantasy. It is not a dream. It is the solution to the world's intractable problems that is the only guarantor of peace. Cooperation, based not in fear but in love, is the future of our collective humanity - cooperation built on the premise of unity with each other, of oneness with all, rather than the premise of self-interest and competition.
What appears to be an economic message that has won popularity among many because it appears to address the concerns of many, in its essence reduces human potential to the common denominator of self-seeking, and to a belief that what is of the past needs to be repeated in the present because something central has gotten lost. Thus, "let us make America great again." America has not achieved her true greatness yet and it cannot be achieved by methods that are based on fear and on 'winning.' America's strength is not in her military might or in her power or material wealth as compared with others. It is in her ideals and her universal appeal to the principles of democracy. These principles emphasize the universality of the right of all to seek life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Even though they have not been effectively applied in America's history which has excluded large numbers of people from these principles, they are the principles upon which the future must be founded.
This moment in history is part of a larger turning point for America, one in which the element of fear and the belief in self-interest have come to a focus within national consciousness in order to be purified and released into the light, and in which a new perspective, that of unity with the wellbeing of all can begin to take its place.
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