-By :The Editors Of The American Dossier-
Today we celebrate our 242nd year as a federal republic. We are governed by 3 branches of government: Executive, Legislative and Judicial . We are further broken down into and governed at state, county, township ,borough and ward levels. In this country we all have a voice in voting for who represents us.
In recent weeks the news media has suffocated us with a plethora of issues varying from: North Korea, Russian collusion, The National anthem, taxation and trade policy, immigration and this past week the search for a new Supreme Court Justice and it seems we are simply told to fight amongst ourselves.
This has gone to the extreme to where billionaire Tom Steyer said perhaps there could be a "nuclear war" that would provide a "real course correction" to Donald Trump's presidency.. Dialog not this type of anger and irrationality is the only true course correction.
Before the dawn of present day media formats, information was dispersed orally. The term ‘town crier’ traces its roots back to 1560. The town crier was an official a town officer who made public proclamations, kind of like a daily newspaper.
This would often create dialog amongst people. Depending on the form of government people could speak freely or perhaps have their head chopped off. Unfortunately there are still governments that go with the option to chop off people’s heads with differing opinions.
Thankfully in the United States we have the first amendment that protects the right to free speech. Even the modern day town criers are protected with this right.
The ability to choose to have dialog and civil discourse is what separates us from all other creatures.
In American Government we have been blessed to have had ‘statesmen’ whether you agree with their politics is indifferent, some that come to mind...Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan come to mind.
So what is a statesman and what does it have to do with dialog and communication?
*A politician and a statesman are not the same thing. A statesman is not a tyrant; he is the free leader of a free people and he must possess four critical qualities:
1. A bedrock of principles
2. A moral compass
3. A vision
4. The ability to build a consensus to achieve that vision
Some people consider Pericles of Athens, Abraham Lincoln, and Winston Churchill to be the greatest statesmen. Their principles rested on the ideal of freedom: democratic liberty, equality under the law, and individual freedom—the freedoms to live as you choose
These men had a vision of expanding this liberty further, out to the common man. They all courted controversy in some of the measures. It was not about popularity for them.
*Taken from (https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/the-4-qualities-of-a-true-statesman/)
So what does this have to do with the modern day man and the media?
There is clearly a measure of lack of quality of of substance and some instances greed for profitability. The quality of journalism has dwindled to the point of where Artificial Intelligence can write news articles based on algorithms
We are also at a historical crossroads in history in regards to generational divide. Someone from the Depression era simply is not going to understand nor necessarily share the same values as someone who is a millennial and vice versa. Remember we all have a voice and rights. We have right to freedom of speech but with that right is also to avoid double standards and suppression. And in our human condition there will always be imperfection.
Perhaps this is where modern day media can step in, we must better teach about our past transgressions and triumphs so the next generation can build. Sometimes the truth hurts. We have to stop throwing daggers at each other’s backs.
In closing, regardless of generation we all celebrate and suffer in our human condition. In what is commonly referred to as the 12 steps to recovery associated with Bill W and adopted by many self help efforts is the 10th step. This has already been discussed in recent weeks by several sources, this is indeed something that regardless of generation we all can aspire for…self acceptance and respect for each other:
**The 10th Step implicitly promises that we are going to make mistakes in life. There’s no way to avoid it. No one is perfect and we’re all bound to act thoughtlessly at times, or to make errors based on misjudgment or due to inaccurate or incomplete information. Once we fully understand and accept this, we no longer regard mistakes as dreadful things to be avoided at all costs. And if we pay attention to our mistakes instead of trying to sweep them under the rug or to deny responsibility for them, they may even prove to be blessings and teach us the most important lessons we will ever learn.
(**http://serenityweb.com/?page_id=91)
This is perhaps a principle that a true statesman follows. It is time for us all whether Journalist or voter to become statesmen and help heal our divide thru passionate dialog
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