Good Neighbor Roots

In Response to the Hypocrisy of the Left

Foundationally, the established Left is very weak. They reject the label of socialism, while advocating for socialist programs like SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, Medicare, Veterans' Affairs, education and infrastructure. This makes them look like hypocrites. They sabotage candidates they deem "too far left" and thumb the scale in State and Federal races. They hamper efforts at progress. Their inaction has led to the rise of corporate monopolies in Alphabet, Meta, Tesla and Amazon, among others. They cozy up to lobbyists and capitalists. It's led to this moment where the top 1% of earners account for 31% of our economy while the top 10% account for 67%. Wealth disparity is now worse today in our country than it was in pre-Revolution France and their insistence on clinging to the status quo helped manifest this reality.

How do they determine what their stances are on issues? What is the philosophical framework that they build from? Even as a political science undergrad in the early '00s, I could see there didn't really seem to be one anymore. It is almost as if they had accomplished everything they needed to back in the '60s and '70s, so fundamentals be damned. As long as the ship continued onward, and we could measure success through GDP and Wall Street indicators, the benefits would trickle down to the least of us. They have kept us on the same precipice we now stand on, merely keeping us from falling over the edge, but doing little legislatively to get us away from it. In the meantime, Republicans have been busy letting our infrastructure crumble, dismantling education and health care and crashing the economy every chance they get. And every time, the window moves farther right and Democrats defend it as the new status quo.

So, where does the left get its moral authority? There doesn't seem to be one anywhere foundationally. They have chosen a purely scientific, results-based form of policy, governance and messaging and, in the vacuum of a perfect world, there would be no issue with this. The problem is we know people are inherently emotional and base decision on feelings instead of facts. When your worldview lacks a moral foundation, even if what you are doing is moral, every step of progress is an uphill battle. You cede the entire mechanism by which most Americans make decisions to the opposition, allowing misinformation to run rampant, fomenting Christian nationalism, eugenics and "Space Laser"-level conspiracy theory.

Why This is not a Response to the GOP or Trump?

Although many MAGA will peel off as Trump becomes more emboldened over the coming months and years, the Good Neighbors' Coalition is designed to unify those of us who already believe that all people are people. It seeks to provide an unimpeachable -- as unimpeachable as possible -- motive behind why we believe what we believe. We seek to force the American left further left, where it should be, instead of in this weird "not conservative" space it occupies today. It will take courage. It will take commitment, but it will be worth it to shape the framework for our public discourse moving forward. We are a positive movement; we stand in opposition, but more importantly, in steadfast Conviction of our Principles, something that is sorely lacking in today's mainstream political ecosystem.

With the release of the Epstein files looming over both sides of the isle, there is a chance the Democratic Party will be unwilling or unable to make the shift to a post-release world. If released, lawmakers will go to prison, from both sides of the isle. Will Establishment Democrats be able to shed its heinous element, or will they fall trying to defend it? In the worst case scenario of complete party collapse, our Good Neighbors' Coalition serves as a new platform for those abandoning the party. In best cases, the Democratic Party adapts and adopts enough of our platform as to essentially be a new party. Perhaps our Coalition will operate as a counterpoint to Turning Point USA, influencing the political landscape in a positive way. It is too early to tell. In any case, the Good Neighbors' Coalition is here to fill the vacuum.