Sign up to get updates from us
Summary
These five names represent people who have been much in the news, in part due to alleged crimes. Unless you count OJ’s conviction for stealing sports memorabilia, none were convicted in criminal court.
They also represent the sad state of affairs in American politics, and gross imbalances in our vaunted system of justice and highly touted national meritocracy.
For the next 10 minutes, we will talk about imbalances in our politics, justice system and merit system.
Continuing
Let’s start this conversation with what our roles are in all of these instances. Yes, everyone knows that both OJ and Jussie are guilty. There is abundant evidence, including eyewitnesses and mounds of corroborating testimony and other evidence to remove any rational doubt. OJ was let off after committing two murders by a clearly biased jury. But we, all of us, including the jury, know that OJ is an unconvicted double murderer. After the trial, Johnny Cochrane, OJ’s defense attorney, was asked if justice was black or white, referring to race, not clarity. His answer, “Justice has a color, and it is green.”
Jussie was let off after being charged with 16 felonies by an apparently rogue Chicago prosecutor. As I write this podcast, an enraged Chicago Major and Police Superintendent are both calling Jussie a liar. Both are furious that Jussie continues to throw the Chicago Police Department under the bus by continuing to maintain his innocence.
And we also know that Brett (Kavanaugh, in case you forgot) was defending himself against an uncorroborated accusation. There was even testimony that conflicted with his accuser’s claims. Yet one side of the political aisle wanted his head.
Donald was investigated for the better part of two years, with the Special Counsel using every tool available to his powerful office. The result, as summarized by the US Attorney General, was that Donald did not collude with a foreign power to tilt a Presidential election, and there was no conclusion on obstructing justice. Has Donald, The Donald, done other things outside of what he was investigated for that could be worthy of criticism? Yes, but my guess is that so have all the others on today’s list, including Hillary. But let’s stick to what we know.
Oh, yes, Hillary. We all know that she spent considerable time and expense to be able to have her own local server, instead of having the State Department’s IT folks take care of her. And as the head of the State Department, she would have been well taken care of; likely better and faster than handling it on her own. With 24/7 online help and IT people who would have been more than happy to show up in person at any time. And we all know that Hillary erased tens of thousands of emails, using specialized techniques to insure they could not be recovered as is usually the case with computer erasures. Isn’t it clear to all of us that the only reason anyone would bother with the cost and inconvenience of having one’s own server, rather than using the one at work where you are the boss, would be to maintain privacy, including being able to permanently erase information?
In each case, all five names, it is easy to see money and influence raising its ugly head, unfairly affecting the outcomes. Money and influence got OJ and Jussie off the hook, and seems to be protecting Hillary. Money and influence almost derailed, Brett. And I see it on both sides of Donald’s investigation by the Special Counsel.
Today’s Key Point: As important as it is, today’s key point is not the massive and unfair advantage conferred by money and influence; it is our role in all of these examples–and our role in how we allow ourselves to be governed. We, you and I, are responsible for whatever negatives are represented in Donald’s investigation, Jussie and OJ going scot free, Brett’s time at the stake and whatever excesses Hillary might have committed. “In a democracy, we get the government that we deserve.” -Alexis de Toqueville, French author and historian. And whatever you think of government local, state or national, we all have the government we deserve. Followers of Revolution 2.0™ will recognize this as a recurring theme. If we want change, it is up to us to make that change happen. You. Me. 100%. Each one of us is 100% responsible for driving the change we seek. The change our country needs.
The first question related to today’s key point that we need to ask ourselves is, “Where do I get my news, and with whom do I talk politics and news of the day?” If those sources, in the main or entirely, share similar points of view, then we cannot ever be objective. We are living in an echo chamber. Echo chambers tend to convince people of the correctness of an agenda, then look for reasons to justify that agenda. The correct approach, of course, is to look at the facts, applying non-agenda based reasoning to the facts (courts call real facts evidence) to come up with the course of action. That’s how we arrive at the right agenda. Is that what you are doing? I work hard to make sure that is what I am doing. Let’s do it together.
Segueing from the specifics of today’s topic to overall principles, the core, driving principles at Revolution 2.0, are:
And do it all in love; without love, these are empty gestures, destined to go nowhere and mean nothing.
If we apply those two core principles, personal responsibility and brother’s keepers, simultaneously, never only one or the other, we will always be on the right path. Depending upon what we face, one principle or the other may appropriately be given more emphasis, but they are always acted upon together.
The Founders, Revolution 1.0, were declared traitors by the British Crown, and their lives were forfeit if caught. We risk very little by stepping up and participating in Revolution 2.0™. In fact, we risk our futures if we don’t. I am inviting you, recruiting you, to join Revolution 2.0™ today. Join with me in using what we know how to do–what we know we must do–to everyone’s advantage. Let’s practice thinking well of others as we seek common goals, research the facts that apply to those goals, and use non agenda-based reasoning to achieve those goals together. Practice personal responsibility and be your brother’s keeper.
Let’s continue to build on the revolutionary vision that we inherited. Read the blog, listen to the podcast, subscribe, recruit, act. Here’s what I mean by “acting.”
Revolution 1.0 in 1776 was built by people talking to other people, agreeing and disagreeing, but always finding ways to stay united and going forward. Revolution 2.0 will be built the same way.
Join me. Join the others. Think about what we are talking about and share these thoughts and principles with others. Subscribe, encourage others to subscribe. Act. Let’s grow this together.
And visit the store. Fun stuff, including hats, mugs and t-shirts. Recommend other items that you’d like to see.
Links and References
Do You Live in and Echo Chamber? (EP. 112)
Contact
As we get ready to wrap up, please do respond in the blog with comments or questions about this podcast or anything that comes to mind, or connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. And you can subscribe to the podcast on your favorite device through Apple Podcasts, Google, or Stitcher.
Now it is time for our usual parting thought. It is not enough to be informed. It is not enough to be a well informed voter. We need to act. And if we, you and I, don’t do something, then the others who are doing something, will continue to run the show.
Know your stuff, then act on it. Knowing your stuff without acting is empty; acting without knowing is dangerous.
Will Luden, writing to you from my home office at 7,200’ in Colorado Springs.
