Achieving the Declaration of Independence Goals

In this series of posts, I’ve laid out numerous changes that are needed for the United States to better support our goal of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” In fact, there were so many details that I’m going ignore them for this overall summary.

Protester with placard: Living Wages on a Living Planet

Life

Life requires universal healthcare. Implementation details can be argued, but all citizens need adequate coverage. The current pandemic highlights the interconnected fabric of society that, when broken, everyone suffers. Well-paid executives depend on essential goods and services as much as anyone.

Chalk outline of a victim roped off by police tap

Beyond healthcare, life can be a daily struggle between crime and order. Crime arises not just from inherently immoral people, but from the breaking of the social promise that hard, honest work will be rewarded with a good living. It is society’s responsibility to provide fair opportunity to everyone. A livable wage for an honest day’s work. That will lower the crime rate.

Liberty

Pursuit of Happiness

Besides work skills, the pursuit of happiness by adults also depends on fair implementation of the citizenry’s wishes. Yet in this century, the Electoral College has installed two presidents who received fewer votes than their competitors. That is undemocratic. State elections are more democratic, but each state is considered equivalent in the Senate. This results in a Senate, with states of barely sixteen percent of the population controlling half that deciding body. Also we should not overlook that individual states gerrymander their districts. Such that more representatives of one party can be sent to the House, despite the other party winning the majority across the state.

Our aspirations for “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” require changes to the status quo in healthcare, opportunity, education, and our electoral system.

Change is not easy, but it is necessary.