The Age of Aquariaaaarrrrgh!!!
Howard Dean believes that we are about to return to that enlightened time known as "the '60s", when noble deeds were dreamed and done:
Dean said he is looking for "the age of enlightenment led by religious figures who want to greet Americans with a moral, uplifting vision."
"The problem is when we hit that '60s spot again, which I am optimistic we're about to hit, we have to make sure that we don't make the same mistakes," Dean added.
Apparently our society perfected its ambitions at precisely that moment, and the great wheel of life is about to return us there once again. Though it occurs to me that Dean considers himself a progressive, so can he really believe that life is cyclical? Anyway, Dean wants us to do all the things we did in the 1960's, only not really do those things at all:
"I'm not asking to go back to the '60s; we made some mistakes in the '60s," he said. "If you look at how we did public housing, we essentially created ghettoes for poor people" instead of using today's method of mixed-income housing.
Another mistake Democrats made in the '60s, Dean acknowledged, was that "we did give things away for free, and that's a huge mistake because that does create a culture of dependence, and that's not good for anybody, either," he noted, a reference to the Great Society welfare programs created by Democratic President Lyndon Johnson in the mid-1960s.
Dean would prefer to do things the way Republicans and conservatives want, but in a way that gives all credit to Democrats and progressives, because those nasty righties don't have their heart in the right place:
"How about if I'm a wild-eyed radical liberal who is willing to say the conservatives had some good ideas?" Dean told his audience. "But let's go back and make what we wanted to work, using some of their ideas to make sure that the mistakes don't get made again," he added.
Dean also added:
"I do think that empowering people to help themselves is what we should be doing in the 21st century," he added, stating that the Democratic Party now emphasizes the value of work.
Hey Howard, how about empowering school vouchers and empowering tax cuts that let people keep more money? No? Too righty?
But if Democrats dismiss those things, how can they be sure they aren't making the same mistakes they did in the 60's? Their hearts were in the right place then, but they made mistakes, Dean said. Can they really be sure that isn't true today? I call upon all Democrats to doubt their judgment as much as Howard Dean doubts it. He's the leader of your party, shouldn't you trust him?
I'll finish with a religious sentiment of my own, a short prayer:
Dear Lord, though we Republicans are deeply flawed, we beseech you humbly for but one simple gift, and pray that you will grant us our modest desire: establish Howard Dean as the head of the Democratic Party for as long as he lives on this earth. Amen.
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