Welcome Center Left and Moderate Liberals
Thanks for your interest in The Developmentalist. Our goal is to honor and integrate the bedrock values of all three major American cultures: traditional, modern, and progressive. Notwithstanding the culture war, we believe these distinct sets of values can be reconciled and harmonized for the greater good of our country.
Here’s a list of some of the liberal values and political goals we seek to forward:
• Economic and scientific progress, and promoting democracy abroad
• Protecting workers and the middle-class, and limiting corporate power
• Personal success, higher education, and meritocracy
• Using government to ameliorate social ills, and ensuring that none are in need
This is a partial list of what we call Fairness Values, which helped make our nation the envy of the world. We see Fairness Values, along with Liberty Values, as essential to what we call the “modern worldview.” If you would like to suggest additional Fairness Values, or make a comment about the best aspects of liberal modernism, please click on the link below or comment at the bottom of this page. We will highlight selected comments at the bottom of this page.
We want to help progressives and traditionalists better appreciate the essential role that Fairness Values play in our national culture. And we likewise want to help modernists better appreciate the upsides of traditionalist Heritage Values, as well as progressive Caring Values. If this sounds interesting, we invite you to explore these relevant thought pieces on our website:
Regardless of your take on the “developmental perspective,” considering the bedrock values of those you disagree with can make you a more effective advocate for the values you hold dear. Reflecting on the values of our political opponents can also help de-escalate the culture war so that our disagreements can become productive again.
Suggestion:
Helping people in developing countries take part in the global economy, as entrepreneurs and as workers, and advancing conditions for them to do so.
(This is work I’ve done overseas, mainly in Islamic-majority countries, under the auspices of the US State Department, CRDF, and a number of NGOs based here and abroad.)