Unity 2020
The Balance America Desperately Needs
The United States is set up as a primarily two-party system out of the recognition of and a clear need for balance in a nation of diverse people and opinions. However, for many reasons, this balance is out of wack. Our political parties are taken over by the most extreme positions, with the internet and social media exacerbating the division.
The squeaky wheels get the grease, and the loudest voices dominate the conversation. This may have worked in the past, but in the current world, this increasing polarization can only end in disaster. We don’t have the luxury of letting the pendulum perpetually swing back and forth without ever coming close to balance. The stakes are too high. The world too chaotic. The system too prone to stalemate, error, and dysfunction.
I recently wrote about the importance of free speech on the blog and in it, I discussed the need for a balance between conservatism and progressivism:
“Conservatives are those cautious about change, wary of abandoning old ways due to an understandable concern for how systems always tend toward entropy, or as Chinua Achebe put it, Things Fall Apart.
Progressives are those who understand that the world is changing, and systems and policies need to change with it. If we do nothing in the face of a changing world, things fall apart as well.
It seems obvious to me that both viewpoints are absolutely vital to balance each other out as we constantly make decisions that will determine the fate of a civilization of more than 300 million people and impact the entire world.
In your own mind, you likely would want a balance between respect for caution and the ability to take calculated risks to better your life or help others.
In the same way that the balancing act must play out in the human mind, it must play out in human society. Sometimes we need progressives to pave the way to a better future and shirk old systems that are not beneficial anymore. Sometimes we need conservatives to keep the country from forging ahead too soon and falling prey to the innumerable ways in which things fall apart.
We all agree that everyone’s subjective experience is unique. No two people see the exact same world. So it is only by openly and successfully communicating our viewpoints that we can piece them together into something resembling a shared reality.”
This understanding of the need for both progressives and conservatives is vital for a useful engagement with politics in the world of today. It is not productive to demonize one half of the population as backward and regressive or one half as naive and reckless. Instead, we should appreciate that it takes both views in communication to maintain a functioning and prosperous society.
Enter Unity2020. This is an ambitious plan, first proposed by Bret Weinstein, to instantiate the need for balance, real balance, into the executive branch in a powerful and novel way. This plan involves drafting a competent progressive and a competent conservative to share the office of President as partners, making decisions collaboratively, and finally taking a meaningful step toward equilibrium in a dangerously discombobulated system.
While it may seem implausible, especially for the fast-approaching election, I urge you to give it some thought. If not for this year, then for the near future.
From the Unity2020 campaign:
“Imagine it’s November 4th, the morning after the election. How will you feel?
If President Trump is returned to office, will you feel that your future is secure?
If Vice-President Biden is elected, will you feel that the nation is in capable hands?
Now imagine instead that a courageous, competent pair of patriots take the stage — a team not beholden to any party, nor beset by conflicts of interest. A team driven to build a future where our national vision is clear, our plan is wise and — for the first time — every American is fully included.”
Let us not be resigned to suffer a broken system. These are momentous times, times of change, times of progress. Let’s dream big. Let’s strive for unity when we need it the most.
To learn more, or to find out how to lend your support, please see the Articles of Unity released by the Unity2020 campaign.
An appearance by Bret Weinstein discussing the plan on The Hill TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=ptrrDfDGzqs&feature=emb_title
On Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArticlesOfUnity
