1) The key
to Arthur's political success is not found in political
marketing as we know it today. This automatically distinguishes
him from all the other candidates, and endears him to the people.
No Spin. No deceptions. Just open and honest communication. He
is more concerned about the welfare of the American people than
about himself, and this is readily apparent in everything he says.
He listens politely to lobbyists, weighs the merit of their arguments,
but never bases his decisions on contributions or personal gain.
2) He is leader
in the finest sense of the word. Not dictating or micro-managing
the way things will be, but by inspiring the best from everyone.
By not seeking credit for himself, he receives accolades for the
works that others accomplish in his name.
3) He cherishes
his allies, and works hard to keep their friendships alive,
constantly acknowledging their worth. In this way he earns their
loyalty without buying them off. He also tries to understand the
world from their perspective and genuinely respects their concerns.
He treats them in such a way that they strive to rise to his level,
adding their own personal worth to his global dream of cooperation.
4) Surprisingly,
he looks upon his enemies in much the same way. Instead
of labeling them as evil, and thereby setting the stage for vigorous
conflict, he works to change their hearts, to make them worthy
to become our allies. He recognizes and challenges their dignity
as leaders in order to instill dignity in their acts. He leaves
the door open to reconciliation from which both sides benefit.
He knows that when all the peoples of the world respect him as
president, as a moral leader, and admire his results, errant leaders
will no longer benefit by contending with him. Instead, they will
try to be more like him, and all will benefit. Democracy will
become more than just a questionable risk.
5) He would
have responded to the events of 9/11 in a wise manner.
First of all, he would not have responded in fear, or for revenge,
or for ulterior motives. That would be playing into the terrorists
hands. He would have rallied his allies and struck al Qaeda at
its heart and stay there until the job was done completely. The
resulting Afghanistan would then become a valuable ally of freedom
and sanity in the world. He would have studied the indigenous
culture and religion in order to build bridges of cooperation.
He would have won the hearts and minds of the people through his
own personal qualities. Not buying them off, or bullying their
submission. That creates nothing but distrust, resentment and
trouble on ahead. He would have hunted down Bin Laden without
mercy, throwing the combined might of the United States and its
allies against him until the threat was eradicated. And this would
have stood as a lesson for our enemies elsewhere.
He would certainly
not have invaded Iraq, where sectarian tensions
and religious beliefs made the possibilities of a peaceful democracy
slim if not impossible. In other words, he would have had the
foresight to know that an invasion of Iraq would only make things
worse, for the people of Iraq and the world in general. He would
have known that he was playing into al Qaeda's plan, portraying
the United States as the evil aggressor that our enemies claim.
6) If Arthur
found himself in a situation like we have in Iraq, while simultaneously
fighting a war on terror, he would understand that the basis of
both conflicts is really a clash of ideologies. One does not win
such a war with bullets or bombs, or intimidation. These displays
of power from a non-Muslim nation only make things worse. A true
leader starts by getting his own house in order. His beliefs,
his ideology of freedom, democracy and equal rights, has to be
more than rhetoric—not something based on money or power,
or hidden agendas. It has to be pure and compelling, that rejects
anything that smacks of hypocrisy.
He knows that
Capitalism is an economic philosophy and nothing more. It cannot
stand as a model for morality. We have high ideals in this country.
The highest in the world. We need to be inspired by them again.
Each one of us needs to make goodness, fairness and concern for
all people part of our everyday decisions. We cannot hope to be
competent leaders of the world when so many of our own people
fall behind, live in poverty, and drop out of school. We cannot
proselytize the benefits of freedom when our courts are congested,
our prisons filled beyond capacity, and chemical escape remains
a strong priority in many people's lives. We cannot speak of family
values with so many of our families in crisis. We cannot proclaim
democracy as the ideal form of government when our political leaders
care only about raising money, catering to special interests,
and personal gain.
If we do not
repair our own lives, here and now, we lose the war of ideologies,
no matter how many people we kill.
Arthur understands
that.
7) Arthur
knows that not communicating with our enemies only emboldens them.
We cannot positively influence a nation we do not communicate
with. Cuba, after all these decades, is a prime example. But so
is Iran and North Korea. Why leave our image to our enemies to
create? History is very clear on this. Our present policy contributes
to our problems immeasurably.
8) Arthur's
strength comes from winning people over to his side. One does
not do this by ignoring the opposition party. He understands that
a voter mandate of 1 or 2 % is not a mandate at all. By ignoring
the wishes of half the population, indeed, by blatantly defying
their wishes at every turn, the stage is set for eventual failure.
No one profits, in the long run, by fueling partisan bickering,
other than talks show hosts and politician consultants. The
people always lose.
9) Arthur,
through example and command, works to raise the level of political
discourse and cooperation.
10) He responds
heroically to the suffering of foreign peoples like those in Darfur.
Genocide, poverty, diseases like AIDS, are the metaphorical dragons
that the legendary Arthur and his knights always confronted and
defeated.
