Interdependence, declared
When the founders claimed that the legitimacy of any government derives not from status or class but from the consent of the governed, they also committed us to a web of interdependence.
A brief message this week and next, as most of my time will be engaged in moving my Mom closer to us (we’re happy, she’s excited, we’ve got multiple lists going to keep us on track).
On Friday, the celebration of the U.S. declaration of independence seemed muted here - a lot fewer explosive fireworks, a lot more somber reflection. I chatted with one young woman who held her “liberty and justice for all” sign in front of our courthouse as a windstorm rolled into town. She wished me a good evening, and I thanked her for being there.
When the founders declared independence, and made the formidable claim that the legitimacy of any government derives not from status or class but from the consent of the governed, they also committed us to a web of interdependence. (It was already there, certainly, and probably more obvious on the frontier than in our civic life.)
A people cannot consent to a government that lies to them. There is no true consent if it is gained by false representations and pretenses. And a people cannot determine if their government is lying without one another, without communities of librarians and journalists and scientists and educators. We rely on one another for everything, including this.
So as this regime moves forward with its destructive agenda, it has sacrificed its status as a legitimate government with its willful lies and misinformation. And we, more than ever, need to work together to declare our mutual interdependence on one another.
Be safe and well, and keep taking care of yourselves and each other.
