I am reworking aspects of the website for the Good Decision Project starting with the homepage. While “The Conversation” or blog dimension of the site has shown signs of life, the website has been underwhelming in terms of response and following. Following the publishing of Introducing a better way to make decisions for ourselves and democracy in The Fulcrum I had to conclude I wanted to offer more on the website. 

With democracy at risk in this country I am deliberately concentrating on activities devoted to recruiting people to work on healing divisions in the public/political dimension. A working assumption is power in this country is a 4 to 5 percent matter in the current two party system. The independent voters and thinkers will shift the majority one way or the other. My second assumption is if more people did the due diligence for deciding their vote, and allowed their personal/community/religious values regarding ‘good’ to truly play a role in their vote decision, this country would choose to remain a democracy and the necessary power would align behind that position.

As a culture and people we have demonstrated in America a kind of stratified capacity kindness and generosity. We have also historically shown we have the capacity to transform racism and prejudice into pluralism and inclusion although that work is far from completed. I believe we simply seem to have allowed the political/public narrative to be hijacked by our ‘worst angels’. The task of moving from stratified goodness to integrity in goodness need only engage 4 to 5 percent more of our silent majority at the public level. The Good Decision may seem naive in its focus on good, but instead of naivety I want to claim the word ‘hopeful’ for this project. I think the future of democracy is connected to the commitment of a few more good people to the integrity of their vote. We are a nation divided but this isn’t the first time we have faced civil strife and in the end we have always rallied. The Sense of Democracy is hinged on, as President Lincoln declared in his first inaugural address, our ‘better angels.

I am including with the home page of the website examples of people recruiting the good energy of our culture. These links to good works are called Boxes of Hope. The more I delve into this kind of activism the more impressed I am at the scope of the silent swell of positive activism in in this country. The Good Decision as a process remains as I have been saying, a project more than a product. I will continue to work on its presentation and usefulness to the reader. Hope motivates. I mine the news for hope because I dislike bitterness and despair in myself. My activist motivation seems to rise to hopeful energy where ever I find it. I am guessing that there is another five to ten percent out there who respond the same way. That small number may just tip the balance.