We are in trouble. Yes there are very specific issues that we could mention; jobs, military spending, education, political polarization, deficits, wars, prison-industrial complex, etc.
I am involved in several causes that mean a lot to me in particular Single Payer and the penetration of the military by dominionist Christians.
I have been involved in recent political campaigns and I will got to Arizona and/or Nevada to do Latino GOTV for Obama.
Although I was interested in politics always I really did not become truly involved until 2003 when I started lurking here. Now I guess I am a typical Kossack.
About one month ago, my friend Ilene Proctor invited me to one of her Great Mind Series event featuring Marianne Williamson. I knew she was a famous spiritual writer but Lara, my fiancee (yes), is a big fan of her and had read some of her books. So I decided to go.
Wow! Marianne is very political. And I found no daylight between her politics and mine. I was impressed. She immediately struck me as a very clear and passionate mind.
There was one issue that she emphasized that I had not thought of that and I have started researching.
Since then I met with Marianne to deepen my understanding of her and her plans regarding this issue.
So here it is; we need more women in American politics, lots more.
First of all facts.
America is #79 (yes seventy nine) among 186 countries in the world when it comes to women in elected political positions. Only 16.9% of US Senate and Congress position are held by women.
Doing more research I came across this; The Best And Worst Places In The World To Be A Woman
So American women need to play quite a bit of catch up.
But as a man why should I get involved? Certainly I am not a misogynist, on the contrary, I have all along helped as many women succeed as I could in business, politics or life.
No, the reasons why I want to get involved are more than just helping members of the opposite sex however discriminated and blocked they have been.
The reasons why I want to get involved are far deeper. Marianne Williamson has it right, if more women do get involved in politics, America will undergo a vast, very positive and even urgently needed change.
In the next weeks and months I will try to elaborate on the why and how of this ambitious and so promising proposal. I'll be talking to Marianne periodically and I invite any of you (specially women, but men are very invited too) to ask questions and make suggestions in the comments.
Marianne is planning an event for after the November elections in Los Angeles, Sister Giant: Women, Non-Violence and Birthing a New American Politics. This will be the initial salvo (I am a typical man using war metaphors, see?). No, this will be the initial event that will usher a new era of love in politics to replace the dysfunctional era of fear and aggression. An era where our excesses, whether military and prison spending, or healthcare costs, where our weaknesses, whether in healthcare (she is a big Single Payer supporter BTW) or education, will be reevaluated by minds with a different perspective and with different instincts.
But for now I suggest that those of you who want to start understanding Marianne watch this YouTube of what she said during Occupy Berkeley;