Why Progressive Living?

Americans today are divided into three camps.

There are millions of Democrats (a few of whom think of themselves as independents).

There are millions of Republicans (a few of whom think of themselves as independents).

And then there are a tiny handful of plutocrats — ultrawealthy individuals who have no use for working Americans whether they're Democratic or Republican, and who, in fact, have no use for Democracy itself.  They've got theirs, and they're not interested in participating in American democracy as citizens.  Many are sociopaths, their humanity derailed by an obsessive-compulsive disorder that centers on grasping more money, no matter how much they already have.

Republicans have been told — primarily by "pundits" who work for that tiny handful of plutocrats — that their economic woes are due to Democrats.  This, of course, makes Republicans angry.

Democrats are annoyed with Republicans for their gullibility, and for the destructiveness of the ideas that they've absorbed from the plutocrats.  This makes Democrats angry.

We think all of that anger is wasted.  It's time that the blame for the American economic crisis be laid instead squarely where it belongs —  at the doorstep of the plutocrats.  Working Americans simply shouldn't be wasting their time railing at each other while the plutocrats smirk behind the scenes.

Don't get us wrong.  Progressive Living isn't "bipartisan," whatever that means.  Rather, we're squarely in the camp of the Progressives.  The reason for this is simple:  wherever it appears, whenever it appears, conservatism means the exploitation of working people, exploitation of the environment, or both.  To both plutocrats and the "conservative" politicians who work for them, such as Scott Walker, conservatism means nothing else at all.

Consequently, conservatism has failed, or, at least, it has failed the vast majority Americans, including the vast majority of conservative voters.

Indeed, conservatism as failed so flagrantly, so consistently, and for so long now that its proponents can no longer offer even the appearance of credibility.  As an ideology, it is even more bankrupt than Communism. What remains of conservatism is a decaying corpse propped up by lies and money, and propelled, zombie-like, by arrogance, greed, and hatred of Democracy.

But, having said that, we don't spend a lot of time here at this site critiquing working people who happen to think of themselves as conservatives (albeit wrongly, because nobody really wants to shoot themselves in the foot).  We know quite a few, and, when they aren't being misled and made furious by plutocratic propaganda, they make good neighbors, coworkers, and friends.  As one might expect:  after all, they aren't fundamentally different, as people, from Progressives.  And their economic interests are essentially identical.  

However, as we've said, they have been misinformed.

Systematically.

Intentionally. 

And from the worst of motives.

Perceiving the enormous gap between reality and what the plutocrats tell Republican voters, the very few Progressive journalists out there typically try to draw attention to that gap. 

We don't go about our mission here in quite the way that these journalists do, debating the issues du jour.  What we primarily try to show here instead is how our values — the kind that Progressives and Conservatives tend to think of as being "American," though they really hold true everywhere for everyone — lead directly, and inevitably, to a Progressive orientation to economics and politics.  

One problem with making this point clear as clear as it should be is that the subject of American values is itself vexed.  Many conservative voters have yet to realize that there is not a single Republican politician who votes as a genuine Christian would.  Jesus was, quite clearly, a Progressive, who stood opposed to every single one of the ideas that comprise the bedrock of the Republican party.  Many other conservatives haven't yet grown aware that America is not, by design, a nation committed to endorsing any specific religion.  

And still fewer Americans, of any political persuasion, are aware that the forefathers of American democracy were children of the Enlightenment, which, first and foremost, embraced rationalism— the conviction that we should ground all of our beliefs in evidence and reason.

We think that the best of all scenarios is when we have a clear understanding of our values, and we work to see those values realized through our political system and through our social institutions, so that they become instruments for advancement, instead of instruments of exploitation.  Americans did just that during the period known, appropriately, as the Progressive Era. So even as we move ahead, it can help to take an occasional look backward.

Again, we think most Americans, both liberal and conservative, are poorly served by politicans, corporate journalists, CEOs and bankers who place the economic gain of a few first and people and the values most try to live by last. It is this that has created, as it must, the elitist and deeply anti-democratic culture of corporate corruption that continues to plague our society.  Beyond the borders of our own society, it continues to contribute substantially to human misery worldwide.

So it is urgent that Americans insist that democratic principles and values find application in all of the institutions of our society. That's why everything that you'll find at Progressive Living is presented in light of the set of values that, after many years of reading and reflection, we think make the most sense and are most true to the spirit of democracy. To be more specific, when we discuss politics and civic responsibility, our point of view will be rooted in what is usually called Progressivism; and when the issues are more philosophical, our point of view will reflect the value system known as Humanism. If you don't know what those words mean, don't worry. It will become clearer as we go along. Or go ahead and have a look at the links here now, if you'd like.

Almost a century ago, in the events leading up to the economic crash of 1929, Americans found themselves in a similar state of political, economic, and moral crisis. The highly successful solution to that crisis, for social conservatives and social liberals alike, was Progressivism. (Which is why "conservatives" are busy trying to rewrite the history of, for example, the New Deal.) 

Restoring Progressive governance will require considerable change (which we emphasized here long before Barack Obama was known to anyone outside of Illinois).

If you happen to be so inclined, we'll tell you how you can help effect change. You'll find critiques of the media, government, corporations, and society here — but not just for the sake of criticism; again, we hope to do something to bring about a consensus, so as to lay the groundwork for reforms. Indeed, we provide a roadmap to an alternative form of governance. There are also many resources pertaining to values, everything from philosophy to world religion. Resources pertaining to Progressivism and Humanism are here too. Eventually, you'll also find information, tools, and advice that will cover the whole span of life, from childbirth to death, as well as proposed reforms for virtually all social institutions, all in a humanistic perspective. This reflects our belief that perhaps the best way to begin to change the world is to live one's own life ethically. 

To get a better sense of the site content, you can proceed to the site map.  Or, to better understand how all of the individual pieces of site content fit together, you can go to a diagram that lays out the overall site architecture (be sure to hover your cursor over each section of the diagram).   Although each individual piece of content has been written to stand on its own, we encourage new visitors to the site to have a look at both the site map and the site architecture.

Thanks for visiting!

The Editors,
Progressive Living