Design For a New Economy: Opportunity In a Time of Crisis

New Economy Agenda

by David Korten

Our economic system has failed on every dimension: environmental, social, and financial. The fact that the Wall Street financial collapse has preceded the terminal collapse of our social and environmental systems is a blessing, because it demonstrates that the economic system has failed even on its own terms.

Financial collapse is only about money and can be fixed over a few years with relative ease. Social collapse is about the loss of relationships of trust and caring that are the essential fabric of functioning community. These relationships can take generations, even centuries, to restore on a national or global scale. Environmental collapse is about Earth’s life support system. This can take millions of years to restore—if ever.

Spending trillions of dollars in an effort to restore Wall Street to its original condition is a reckless waste of time and resources. The more intelligent course is to declare our independence from the predatory institutions of Wall Street and put in place a new policy framework favoring Main Street businesses and workers engaged in the socially and environmentally responsible production of goods and services that improve the lives of all.

The following publications outline the argument and a bold policy agenda to put the needed framework in place:

- David Korten, Agenda for a New Economy: From Phantom Wealth to Real Wealth. Published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2009. Will launch at the historic Trinity Church in the heart of Wall Street January 23, 2009.
- David Korten, “Beyond the Bailout: Agenda for a New Economy,” YES!, Winter 2009 outlines an essential five-part policy framework to facilitate the work of responsible businesses, investors, civic organizations, and local governments engaged in growing a 21st century economy from the bottom up. PDF.
- David Korten, ”After the Meltdown: Economic Redesign for the 21st Century,” Tikkun, November-December 2008 is explicitly addressed to President-elect Obama and includes my high dream for the economic address to the nation I hope he might deliver soon after his inauguration. PDF.

See also the new YES! magazine web page featuring a number of YES! articles on the New Economy. YES! magazine is planning to devote its Summer 2009 issue to the New Economy theme.

I cochair with John Cavanagh, executive director of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C., a New Economy Working Group formed at the end of 2008 to further develop and advance New Economy policies. IPS, which works in partnership with progressive members of Congress and many national groups involved in economic education and policy advocacy, serves as the secretariat of the Working Group. YES! Magazine, the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, and the Great Turning Initiative are initial partners in the New Economy Working Group.

See also "Main Street before Wall Street," "Why do you call money history's most successful con game?," and "Contrasting Prosperity Story Narratives."

http://www.davidkorten.org/content/neweconomy

* * *

"My many years living abroad in Africa, Latin America, and Asia taught me that people of every race, religion, and nationality the world over share a dream of a world of happy, healthy children, families, and communities living in vibrant, healthy, natural environments. When they see an opportunity, people are willing to make extraordinary investments of their life energy in an effort to actualize this dream, as regularly documented in the pages of YES! Liberated from the predatory grip of Wall Street, this long-suppressed energy has the potential to transform our relationships with one another and Earth, and to realize our shared dream of a world that works for all." ~ David Korten

Sanders Op-Ed: Where Do We Go from Here?

By Sen. Bernie Sanders

The next few months will be a pivotal period in the history of the United States and for much of the world. The Bush administration, perhaps the most reactionary and incompetent that our country has ever seen, is leaving office after eight disastrous years. President Barack Obama and an increased Democratic majority take power amidst the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

The decisions that are made early on will send an important signal as to whether Obama’s campaign of “hope” and “change” will be seriously pursued and realized, or whether the power of the Big Money interests will persist – regardless of which president is in office or which party has the majority. Will a new president and a new and more Democratic Congress finally respond to the needs of the middle class and working families of our country, or will Wall Street, insurance and drug companies, the military-industrial-complex, the oil and coal companies, big media and the other powerful special interests continue to hold sway?

Here are just a few of the issues that President Obama, the Congress and all Americans must confront:

The middle class is continuing its steep decline with unemployment soaring, and millions of people in danger of losing their homes, savings and health insurance. The dream of a college education is fading away for many working families as college costs go up while incomes go down. This year, as a result of the economic downturn, the bailout of Wall Street, ongoing tax breaks for the very rich and the war in Iraq, our nation will have a record-breaking deficit and a huge $10.4 trillion dollar national debt. The United States continues to have the highest rate of childhood poverty of any major country, and the most unequal distribution of wealth and income.

As a result of Wall Street greed, recklessness and dishonesty, our entire financial system is in danger of collapsing. The taxpayers of this country have seen trillions of their dollars placed at risk in the largest bailout in world history.

Our incredibly inefficient health care system is disintegrating. Despite spending far more per capita than any other country, 47 million Americans have no health insurance. Even more are underinsured. And we pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs.

We are currently involved in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan which cost us not only the lives and well-being of our soldiers, but over $10 billion a month. These wars are also stretching the Army and our National Guard to the breaking point. Meanwhile, spending for defense has skyrocketed and we now spend $540 billion a year for the Pentagon above and beyond the two wars we’re fighting.

Despite the incredible dangers inherent in global warming we have not yet broken our dependency on fossil fuel and foreign oil, and have made only slight advances in moving toward energy efficiency and sustainable energy.

Those are just some of our problems. There are solutions. Where do we go from here? How do we finally ensure the American government begins representing the needs of ordinary Americans, and not just the greedy, the wealthy and the powerful?

As Vermont’s senator, here are some of the initiatives that I will be fighting for as soon as the new Congress reconvenes in January:

- A major economic recovery program which invests at least $400 billion in each of the next two years to create millions of good-paying jobs rebuilding our infrastructure and moving us toward energy independence, sustainable energy and energy efficiency. In Vermont and throughout the country our roads and bridges are crumbling, our water systems and wastewater plants need major repair and older schools need to be modernized. Millions of homes and buildings are wasting huge amounts of energy and need to be properly weatherized, and we must be aggressive in improving and expanding public transportation. Throughout America, there are thousands of communities which still lack cell phone service and adequate broadband services necessary for 21st century business and education.
- An investigation as to how the greed and recklessness of Wall Street financiers caused the greatest financial collapse since the 1920’s. Those who are responsible for this debacle must be held accountable, and not be allowed to walk away with huge fortunes while the middle class bails them out. Most importantly, we must build a new financial system which discourages short-term and reckless profiteering and reestablishes proper governmental safeguards and regulations.
- Legislation to provide health care to every man, woman and child as a right of citizenship. In addition, we need to greatly expand our primary health care capabilities by educating and sending more doctors, nurses, dentists and other health professionals into rural areas, inner cities and other medically underserved parts of our country.
- An orderly process to bring our troops home from Iraq as soon as possible. We also need a national conversation about the best way to proceed in Afghanistan.

Campaign finance reform legislation which will finally end the power of Big Money over the political process.

Vermonters often ask me whether I am pessimistic about the future of our country. My honest answer is that I am not. Difficult times often bring out the best in people. Now, in this moment of great national crisis, a new president is assuming office who is not only extremely intelligent but has, I believe, a deep historical understanding which will help him see where we need to go in the future. I am confident that with new national leadership and renewed grass-roots activism we can effectively change the direction of our country and create the kind of nation that all of us know America can be.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=306222

* * *

When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it? ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

It's time for greatness -- not for greed. It's a time for idealism -- not ideology. It is a time not just for compassionate words, but compassionate action. ~ Marian Wright Edelman

Dangerous Species Released Back Into Wyoming Wilderness

Big thanks to my friends Wendy and Barb for sharing this article and the great laughter it induces - a definite antidote and balancing to all the heartache of recent years! Ha! Enjoy! :-) Molly

* * *

Dangerous species released back into Wyoming wilderness

January 20, 2009

CASPER, Wyo. – Wyoming officials today confirmed the reintroduction of an aggressive, notoriously mean-tempered species into the state’s vast wilderness. Two Cheneys, a male and a female, were set free today in central Wyoming, a reality that leaves some local residents uneasy.

Officials are optimistic the Cheneys will adapt comfortably to their surroundings and stated the possibility of one confronting a human is remote. However, they were quick to point out the contrary nature of the Cheney and its predilection for violence.

As Wyoming residents contemplate the possibility of encountering a Cheney, something which was comfortably unthinkable over the past eight years, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service along with other local non-governmental organizations has been working closely with local communities to improve awareness about the species and best practices if a Cheney is spotted near a population center.

This marks the first time Cheneys have been integrated into the wilderness for almost a decade, and experts believe the 150- to 200-pound creatures will naturally confine themselves to a chosen Jackson Hole habitat about 2500 acres in area.

“I personally liked knowing the Cheney was under a watchful eye and hundreds of miles away,” said Mitchell Kiser, a resident of Jackson. “I’m not sure how comfortable I am with everyday things now, like talking on the phone, knowing the Cheney’s disposition for wiretapping.”

Some residents believe they have ample reason for concern. During a February 2006 trial wilderness release on Texas ranchland the aggressive male Cheney coexisted in close proximity with humans for only 43 minutes before causing harm to a nearby 78-year-old attorney, inflicting serious injuries to his face and neck.

Since being removed from the Wyoming landscape nearly a decade ago, the Cheneys have remained under the care of the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C. There they have been surrounded by species of similar temperaments in hopes of improving their social behavior, an experiment wildlife officials say yielded mixed results.

“We expect the Cheney to pose roughly the same danger to residents as the Northern Rockies gray wolf,” said Kenneth Black, a ranger with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Wyoming. “If you see the Cheney in the wild, do not approach one, but this variety of Cheney should not show any aggression toward you as long as you remain at a safe distance and vote republican.”

A potential risk also exists for the Cheney in the wild, as the Cheney, along with the Northern Rockies gray wolf, lost its protected species status under the Bush administration’s Endangered Species Act. Most feel the released Cheneys will have no trouble surviving, however, due to the creature’s ability to effectively conceal itself in elaborately secured bunkers.

http://www.thegiantnapkin.com/dangerous_species_released_back.htm

* * *

At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a

kaleidoscope of new possibilities.

~ Jean Houston

Please Take Action Now: Contact Sen. Specter to Support the Confirmation of Eric Holder For Attorney General

Warm Greetings

I am especially tired after a very long day at work. That said, it has come to me that it is important to make the time tonight to do this post, and to send out an email, and to include in it a call to action. These are such extraordinary times we live in. And there is so much opportunity for each of us to increasingly find our own ways to contribute to this new world that is trying to be birthed. All of you know that one of my ways is through networking, researching, writing, sharing, acting, and seeking to grow my heart bigger and bigger. In that spirit, I share an issue which I believe is very important. I know that millions agree. May our numbers grow and grow. May love, caring, compassion, peace, and justice for our nation - and all nations and all peoples and all beings - be nourished by each and every one of us.

This quote is from Truthout.org:
Torture is treason. Lt. Gen. Antonio Taguba, who investigated the Abu Ghraib scandal, said, “There is no longer any doubt as to whether the current administration has committed war crimes. The only question that remains to be answered is whether those who ordered the use of torture will be held to account.” Torture is treason. This is the emblem and depravity of the Bush Administration. It is the most criminal and corrupt government in the history of the United States. Democratic Laws and human rights, the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights have no meaning if the Bush Administration is allowed to remain unaccountable to prima facie crimes.

Yet, today Senator Arlen Specter has actively been blocking the confirmation of the nominee for Attorney General, Eric Holder. The most glaring reason why is that, unlike all before Eric Holder who served as Attorney General under the Bush administration - and also right up to and including Cheney and Bush - this new nominee has taken a firm, clear, strong and unyielding position against torture and instead is grounded in the rule of law. Not to speak of the issue of morality...

"No one is above the law," Eric Holder has said, adding that it was "the obligation of the president . . . to follow those laws." Holder has also said that Obama officials already were scrutinizing the most controversial programs and policies of the Bush administration -- on interrogations, warrantless surveillance and military tribunals for terrorists -- that had undermined civil rights investigations and many other important responsibilities. If confirmed, Holder said, he would immediately step up those efforts, saying urgency was needed because the problems were undermining not only the U.S. standing in the world but the administration of law enforcement and justice at home. He said the biggest concern of the new administration was "to prevent those things from happening in the future."

Amen.

If Senator Specter's decision to delay Eric Holder's nomination disturbs you, then please take action now and call his office at (202)224-4254. You can also email Sen. Specter here: http://specter.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm. It is a bit of a frustrating form, but I used the heading of "Defense", then highlighted "Other", then filled in "Confirmation of Eric Holder". Below that I was able to post my comment. This is what I wrote:

Dear Senator Specter:

I am a 57 year old social worker who has been profoundly concerned about the state of our nation. I have been closely following over the past several years a chronic and extremely concerning pattern of violation of American law, American values, American ideals, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and more. It has sickened me to be witness to the fact that our nation - the United States of America! - has become a nation that tortures, the has secret prisons, that does extraordinary rendition, that has dealt a death blow to Habeas Corpus and the Geneva Conventions, and other blatant violations of the laws and principles upon which our nation was formed and upon which democracy depends. Over the past eight years, America has become unrecognizable to me. I have been horrified that this country I love could fall this low, could grow this dark, could so allow the destruction of our democracy in the name of protecting the nation. This is no longer a tolerable state of affairs. There have been countless enablers along the way, and to the extent that we have allowed ourselves to not be informed, to not stand up and act and speak to this horror, to not demand that it stop, we all have colluded in the destruction of our democracy and the ideals upon which this great nation has been built. Today is YOUR opportunity to take seriously that all who have most enabled such lawlessness to occur MUST be held to account. This is called justice. This is called following the rule of law. This is called being a person of integrity. Please do your job. Please show your true love for this nation and place principles before personalities. Please stand in support of the confirmation of a man who will restore the rule of law and decency and morality in our nation: Eric Holder. America is watching to see what you will do. It is time to show courage and integrity. No more childish games, no more violation of our laws, no more forsaking the true needs and values of our nation. Please. America depends upon us all - and especially those who are in positions of power and whose job it is to act in our best interests to do exactly that. I ask you to do the right thing. NOW. Please immediately stand in support of the confirmation of Eric Holder for Attorney General. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Molly Strong
Gresham, OR


For more information, you can go here:
Holder Calls Waterboarding Torture: http://www.latimes.com/news/la-na-holder-confirmation16-2009jan16,0,7181516.story
Sen. Specter's Forced Delay of Eric Holder Offensive to Millions of Americans: http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/1893
Senate Republicans Delay Holder Vote Over Torture Views: http://www.truthout.org/012209K
Cornyn’s Absurd Hypothetical For Holder: What If Waterboarding Were Your Only Interrogation Option?: http://thinkprogress.org/2009/01/15/cornyn-holder-waterboard/

Barack Obama asks that we all actively participate in our democracy and come together to bring about the changes that are most needed. Certainly among these changes, I believe, is embracing the lessons, the healing, and the transformation of that which brought so much harm to our nation and the world over the past eight years. There are many Americans who do not know that we had become a nation that tortures. Yet we all need to know. There can be no solutions for problems denied. And I never, ever want these same horrors to revisit our children's children or any future generation. I hope that you will consider calling or emailing Senator Specter today. Thank you so much.

Peace & heartfelt blessings,

Molly

We must not allow ourselves to become like the system we oppose.

~ Bishop Desmond Tutu

Capitalism's Self-Inflicted Apocalypse

Published on Wednesday, January 21, 2009 by CommonDreams.org
by Michael Parenti

After the overthrow of communist governments in Eastern Europe, capitalism was paraded as the indomitable system that brings prosperity and democracy, the system that would prevail unto the end of history.

The present economic crisis, however, has convinced even some prominent free-marketeers that something is gravely amiss. Truth be told, capitalism has yet to come to terms with several historical forces that cause it endless trouble: democracy, prosperity, and capitalism itself, the very entities that capitalist rulers claim to be fostering.

Plutocracy vs. Democracy

Let us consider democracy first. In the United States we hear that capitalism is wedded to democracy, hence the phrase, "capitalist democracies." In fact, throughout our history there has been a largely antagonistic relationship between democracy and capital concentration. Some eighty years ago Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis commented, "We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both." Moneyed interests have been opponents not proponents of democracy.

The Constitution itself was fashioned by affluent gentlemen who gathered in Philadelphia in 1787 to repeatedly warn of the baneful and dangerous leveling effects of democracy. The document they cobbled together was far from democratic, being shackled with checks, vetoes, and requirements for artificial super majorities, a system designed to blunt the impact of popular demands.

In the early days of the Republic the rich and well-born imposed property qualifications for voting and officeholding. They opposed the direct election of candidates (note, their Electoral College is still with us). And for decades they resisted extending the franchise to less favored groups such as propertyless working men, immigrants, racial minorities, and women.

Today conservative forces continue to reject more equitable electoral features such as proportional representation, instant runoff, and publicly funded campaigns. They continue to create barriers to voting, be it through overly severe registration requirements, voter roll purges, inadequate polling accommodations, and electronic voting machines that consistently "malfunction" to the benefit of the more conservative candidates.

At times ruling interests have suppressed radical publications and public protests, resorting to police raids, arrests, and jailings-applied most recently with full force against demonstrators in St. Paul, Minnesota, during the 2008 Republican National Convention.

The conservative plutocracy also seeks to rollback democracy's social gains, such as public education, affordable housing, health care, collective bargaining, a living wage, safe work conditions, a non-toxic sustainable environment; the right to privacy, the separation of church and state, freedom from compulsory pregnancy, and the right to marry any consenting adult of one's own choosing.

About a century ago, US labor leader Eugene Victor Debs was thrown into jail during a strike. Sitting in his cell he could not escape the conclusion that in disputes between two private interests, capital and labor, the state was not a neutral arbiter. The force of the state--with its police, militia, courts, and laws-was unequivocally on the side of the company bosses. From this, Debs concluded that capitalism was not just an economic system but an entire social order, one that rigged the rules of democracy to favor the moneybags.

Capitalist rulers continue to pose as the progenitors of democracy even as they subvert it, not only at home but throughout Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Any nation that is not "investor friendly," that attempts to use its land, labor, capital, natural resources, and markets in a self-developing manner, outside the dominion of transnational corporate hegemony, runs the risk of being demonized and targeted as "a threat to U.S. national security."

Democracy becomes a problem for corporate America not when it fails to work but when it works too well, helping the populace move toward a more equitable and livable social order, narrowing the gap, however modestly, between the superrich and the rest of us. So democracy must be diluted and subverted, smothered with disinformation, media puffery, and mountains of campaign costs; with rigged electoral contests and partially disfranchised publics, bringing faux victories to more or less politically safe major-party candidates.

Capitalism vs. Prosperity

The corporate capitalists no more encourage prosperity than do they propagate democracy. Most of the world is capitalist, and most of the world is neither prosperous nor particularly democratic. One need only think of capitalist Nigeria, capitalist Indonesia, capitalist Thailand, capitalist Haiti, capitalist Colombia, capitalist Pakistan, capitalist South Africa, capitalist Latvia, and various other members of the Free World--more accurately, the Free Market World.

A prosperous, politically literate populace with high expectations about its standard of living and a keen sense of entitlement, pushing for continually better social conditions, is not the plutocracy's notion of an ideal workforce and a properly pliant polity. Corporate investors prefer poor populations. The poorer you are, the harder you will work-for less. The poorer you are, the less equipped you are to defend yourself against the abuses of wealth.

In the corporate world of "free-trade," the number of billionaires is increasing faster than ever while the number of people living in poverty is growing at a faster rate than the world's population. Poverty spreads as wealth accumulates.

Consider the United States. In the last eight years alone, while vast fortunes accrued at record rates, an additional six million Americans sank below the poverty level; median family income declined by over $2,000; consumer debt more than doubled; over seven million Americans lost their health insurance, and more than four million lost their pensions; meanwhile homelessness increased and housing foreclosures reached pandemic levels.

It is only in countries where capitalism has been reined in to some degree by social democracy that the populace has been able to secure a measure of prosperity; northern European nations such as Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark come to mind. But even in these social democracies popular gains are always at risk of being rolled back.

It is ironic to credit capitalism with the genius of economic prosperity when most attempts at material betterment have been vehemently and sometimes violently resisted by the capitalist class. The history of labor struggle provides endless illustration of this.

To the extent that life is bearable under the present U.S. economic order, it is because millions of people have waged bitter class struggles to advance their living standards and their rights as citizens, bringing some measure of humanity to an otherwise heartless politico-economic order.

More: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/01/20-9

* * * * *

"If the paladins of Corporate America want to know what really threatens "our way of life," it is their way of life, their boundless way of pilfering their own system, destroying the very foundation on which they stand, the very community on which they so lavishly feed." ~ Michael Parenti

"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing." ~ Albert Einstein

"Never doubt that a small, group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." ~ Margaret Mead

NPR Interview With Michael Meade On the Inauguration of Barack Obama and the Second Layer of Hope

Please visit the Mosaic website, www.mosaicvoices.org, to listen to the NPR interview with mythologist Michael Meade on the inauguration of Barack Obama and the Second Layer of Hope. This is very powerful.

* * * * * * *

From the website on the Second Layer of Hope:

The Second Layer of Hope"It is the nature of hope to become lost; what begins with high hopes often ends in deep despair. Hope hid under the lid after Pandora's box opened, as if all the troubles of the world must be released before genuine hope can be found. Any hope for this hopeless world might have to be found inside the currents of despair that increasingly accompany the news reports of cultural unraveling and environmental disasters.

Initial hopes tend to be false hopes and high hopes that never reach the ground of reality. After naive hopes have been dashed against the hard edges of the world a second level of hope sometimes appears, a "hope against hope."

For, what can be found at the edge of hopelessness and in the depths of despair are the images hidden in the soul, the core imagination that waits to be found when all seems hopeless and the end is in sight. The second layer of hope includes a darker knowledge of the world and a sharper insight into one's own soul. Perhaps it would be better to name the hidden hope "imagination," for it is imagination that keeps the world a becoming thing.

The core and crucial power of humanity is not simple hope, rather it is the capacity for renewal that attends the inborn powers of imagination. Hope is reborn each time someone awakens to the genuine imagination of their own heart. Hope springs eternal as long as people can find a sense of mythic imagination that can create ways to hold the ends and beginnings together, even when things appear hopeless to most."

Excerpted from The World Behind the World, page 63
Order The World Behind the World

* * * * * * *

To really enter the world, you usually have to lose your hopes.

Once a person loses hope, the actual word for that is despair.

In other words, you want leaders who have lost their initial hopes,

who have survived their own despair

because then once you go through that kind of darkness

you find that second level or layer of hope which is not naive

and not overly hopeful, but is more of a

wisened and smartened hope,

and it's a deeper hope that is not deterred by simple defeat.

And my hope is that Obama's sense hope is that second level of hope

because given our difficulties, that's the kind of hope we're going to need.

~ Michael Meade

Barack Obama's Inaugural Address - What Stood Out the Most For Me

Heartfelt Greetings

It is difficult to empress what I am feeling now. It is so overwhelming. I am flooded with gratitude, grief, hope, joy, pride to be an American, connectedness with my fellow Americans and with people everywhere, an increased sense of purpose and service, and so much more. I weep with this experience of being witness to this extraordinary coming together, this extraordinary time in our nation's history and in - what I believe to be - our planetary evolution into greater spiritual maturity than humankind has yet known...Barack Obama's Inaugural Address was among the most moving and profound speeches I have heard in my lifetime. Again and again I could feel how these words were about so much more than this one man. I am humbled as I recognize that there is something much greater happening in these times than what I can grasp or rationally understand. Given the limitation of words, there can also be much power emanating from the intention behind words and from the deeper meaning held between the lines. Among those moments that most deeply touched me in my heart, mind, spirit, and soul, are these pieces of this amazing speech - which I'm realizing is nearly the whole of it... Blessed be... Molly

* * *

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America – they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers ... our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.

To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it)."

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Women's Voices of Inspiration In Extraordinary Times

This is just a glimpse of what has come to me over the past 24 hours, which also is reflective of my own experience, thoughts and emotions, and which I am moved to share with deep gratitude and celebration and great hope and joy... Peace & love ~ Molly

***************

"Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love." -- Martin Luther King, Jr

So looking forward to a new spirit of service, to dedicating myself with others to a collective and individual responsibility, unity, and progress for all on this Planet, and for the Planet itself. So looking forward to the celebration of hope that will be the Obama inauguration. Yeah!! Julie S. Doll

***************

My spirit rises in anticipation from the change in consciousness that has brought about this coming day and the days to follow. I reflect on the struggles of many who came before me who did not break when things got tough. Instead it caused them to look deeper and with more heart into what they could do to make a change. Rather than finding blame, these brave individuals asked their souls for guidance and did the next good thing to move toward the goal. Even if it was one cause, it pushed them outside the comfort of passivity, into the greatness we all posses when a greater motivation moves us to act. Yes, we can! Pamela Luminaire

****************

It is a great day. A moment in time we will all hold dear. We are held in a time when we know our service matters. How we serve matters. What we do matters. How we vote, care for each other, and walk mindfully through our days matters. This is a time that we as a nation rise up to meet our potential and our toughest challenges. But we are united and in that union we can and will accomplish greatness. The difficult times have brought us to this junction, this turning point of becoming better. No longer a nation of destroyers we will heal and mend and repave our way to our better selves. A better nation. A better time. I am grateful to bear witness to such an amazing change, amazing new hope, amazing President. Blessed be. Gayla

Martin Luther King, Jr.: "Beyond Vietnam"

In heartfelt gratitude and honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., "Beyond Vietnam", which was given exactly one year to the date before the death of this great and visionary man, to whom we all owe so much. Each year since first hearing this profound speech, I have been moved to share it again... and again. It's relevance to today cannot be understated. Or it's vision and hope........

Peace ~ Molly

*************************

Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence

By Rev. Martin Luther King

4 April 1967

Speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on April 4, 1967, at a meeting of Clergy and Laity Concerned at Riverside Church in New York City.

For audio and transcript, please go here:

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article2564.htm

**********************

Now let us begin. Now let us rededicate ourselves to the long and bitter -- but beautiful -- struggle for a new world. This is the callling of the sons of God, and our brothers wait eagerly for our response. Shall we say the odds are too great? Shall we tell them the struggle is too hard? Will our message be that the forces of American life militate against their arrival as full men, and we send our deepest regrets? Or will there be another message, of longing, of hope, of solidarity with their yearnings, of commitment to their cause, whatever the cost? The choice is ours, and though we might prefer it otherwise we must choose in this crucial moment of human history.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quoted from "Beyond Vietnam"

Sharif Abdullah To Receive Martin Luther King, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award

Warmest greetings. I am so pleased to share this message from my friend Sharif.

Peace ~ Molly

* * * * * *

Greetings:

In December, I was honored by my friends and collaborators in Sri Lanka with Sarvodaya’s “Vishvamitra” (Friend of the Universe) Award, in recognition of my work with Sarvodaya over the years.

Now, I am again being honored: on Monday, 19 January, 2009, I am scheduled to receive the “Martin Luther King Lifetime Achievement Award” here in Portland. The awards are given annually by The World Arts Foundation.

The awards ceremony takes place at Highland Church Center at 2:00 pm. (The overall program is scheduled to begin at 11 am.) The address is 7600 NE Glisan St., Portland. In the spirit of Dr. King, admission consists of $3.00 donation or three cans of non-perishable food to be given to local food banks.

If you are in the Portland area, please come!

Peace,

Sharif

* * * * *

For more, please check out these websites:

http://www.commonway.org/

http://www.yesmagazine.org/speakers.asp?act=specific_speaker&speakerID=70

http://commonway.org/blog/

http://www.shiftinaction.com/discover/luminaries/sharif_abdullah

http://www.amazon.com/Creating-World-That-Works-All/dp/1576750620

* * * * *

It is only through a profound shift in consciousness that a new society can be born. We all must undergo this shift. A change in consciousness must precede any change in institutions, laws or social patterns. The necessary change is specific: from “I am Separate” to “We are One”. We can’t solve our problems with the same consciousness that created them. Our deep divisions and seemingly insurmountable problems are leading us to new ways of working together... Creating a society that works for all is a sacred act. Every spiritual, religious and wisdom tradition leads us to the same conclusion: working for others is the highest form of spirituality. Our true values lie beyond empty posturing, political sloganeering and campaign rhetoric. We are stronger than our fears and better than our limitations.

~ Sharif Abdullah