It’s time to vote for what we all want.
November is upon us, the debates are mostly over, and there’s a lot at stake, especially if you’re under 30. As a recovering Boomer, I realize that my generation will probably not live long enough to regret the decisions made in November, and those still kicking it won’t care. Ironically, most Americans agree on this roadmap to move our country forward. So this is the people’s platform. But for voters under the age of 30, and their parents, your vote for this agenda has never been more critical.
Women’s Freedom
Don’t get caught in the weeds of abortion or reproductive rights. As we see in Iran, women, and girls are fighting, and dying, for the right to self-determination. After Dobb’s, American women find themselves fighting for the same thing. Women’s freedom is on the line in November. Fortunately, voting for candidates in November that want to protect women’s freedom won’t require the level of courage or sacrifice exhibited by Iranian women. Women have been the economic engine that has driven our increased standard of living and the growth of our GDP during the last 50 years. If Trumpian Republicans get their way, the result will devastate the country if women can’t retain the right to self-determination or their own choices.
Reinvent Public Safety
Let’s not get distracted by bumper-sticker politics. “Defund the Police” is an imprecise term used to stir the pot like Senator Tommy Tuberville did when he told the GOP base that all Black people are criminals. But the reality is America’s approach to public safety hasn’t been reinvented or reimagined since the 1850s. Despite advances in the weaponry of policing, America’s approach to public safety is reminiscent of the era of the horse and buggy. However, the issues facing our criminal justice system have become as complicated as the 21st-century human experience. The current state of policing just can’t handle the load. The reinvention of public safety means acknowledging that police can’t and shouldn’t be expected to do everything, so candidates supporting a vision with significant funds allocated to community engagement, mental health, and social services need to be victorious in November.
Reinvent in Public Education at All Levels
The smoke and mirrors of outrage over banned books and critical race theory won’t hide the fact that our students are falling egregiously behind their global counterparts. While school boards are embroiled in ridiculous culture wars, American students are left struggling with the lasting effects of the pandemic which only exacerbated the lag behind their global peers. Public education is quintessentially American, let’s not abandon it now. Our economy and our democracy depend on it. It’s critical thinking and not critical race theory that teachers have been trying to address but no one listening. To ensure the success of our 21st-century economy, future talent will need to be able to learn how to make critical, strategic decisions whether it’s the warehouse, the production floor or the executive suite. As a result, school board elections have never been more important. November isn’t just about Congress.
Renewable Energy and the Environment
You don’t use a GPS to find out how you got lost. You decide where you want to go and use a GPS to determine. How we got lost is irrelevant, but we know we have an urgent need to reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources and the impact of OPEC+. This means investing heavily and rapidly in renewables and incentivizing oil companies to truly become energy companies, prioritizing the renewable technologies that will make us self-reliant. Renewable energy is also the first priority in abating the impact of the climate emergency which is reducing agricultural output, intensifying storms, and driving inflation. It will take a coordinated effort at every level of government to address the effects of the climate emergency and we can’t afford to elect officials who don’t believe humans can do something about it.
Attainable Housing
Housing is another category of debate that gets weighed down by imprecise language. Cast as an “affordable” housing debate, conversations around trying to bring reasonably priced homes and multifamily apartment buildings into cities and suburbs devolve into thinly veiled fears of “the other” moving in and bringing down property values. In reality, many of those who need this housing are the children and grandchildren of these same affluent families who want, but can’t afford, to move out of their parent’s tony abodes. If you have college loans, an entry-level job, and find it hard to make ends meet, then supporting candidates for attainable housing is the right move.
Common Gun Sense
We’ve been beholden to these 19th-century weapons long enough. They will not protect you from our enemies, who are more likely to take you down by technology, and you won’t see them coming. All we’re left with is the barbarism of bad decisions with guns, from road rage to mass shootings to suicides. Progressive candidates aren’t asking you to give up the second amendment. They’re asking you to support commonsense gun legislation and regulation, which most gun owners want. Voting for these candidates in November is how God will answer your thoughts and prayers.
Reasonable immigration policies,
Unfortunately, politicians from all points on the ideological spectrum have failed us on this one. We’ve got to stop pussyfooting around with this. These arguments about culture and western civilization are BS. We’ve always been a highly diverse, if not inclusive, country, and diversity has benefited us in moments of economic need and national security. Only when societies lack inclusive, clear, and transparent immigration do they fall into ruin. We must find pathways to reasonable immigration that drive our GDP and our standard of living while reducing the infighting that’s a drag on our economy and national fabric.
While there are certainly a few more planks of the progressive platform to consider, these are the critical issues on the ballot in November 2022 and worthy of your support.
