Chris Jepson: If we lived in the 'best of all possible worlds'

I write this column on Monday so I do not know the results of the presidential debate, whether Trump or Clinton was declared the outright winner. For Trump to be considered the victor would suggest he and Clinton were actually competing in two different events, she the high hurdles, Trump the low hurdles.

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” every citizen would be completely responsible for him or herself. Each of us would be born to loving parents who nurtured us into becoming responsible, self-reliant adults. No one would require government assistance to sustain them because as responsible, self-reliant adults each of us would have anticipated life’s curveballs and would have planned for those proverbial cloudy days all of us inevitably encounter.

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” all of America’s corporations and businesses would be honorable. They would provide their employees a livable wage and a supportive work environment all the while offering shareholders transparency and a “good” return on investment. America’s corporations wouldn’t require government regulations dealing with business or environmental practices because all of America’s businessmen and women would be ethical and above board.

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” all Americans would have medical insurance of equal and comparable coverage. All mothers-to-be would have good prenatal care and adequate nutrition to bear healthy children who in turn grow-up to be “responsible, self-reliant adults.”

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” America would not have such a racist past. Our society would not historically have participated in genocides or 400 years of slavery and Jim Crow. Our black citizens would have had the same opportunities to acquire property and wealth as their white middleclass counterparts. Likewise, generationally impoverished whites would not have been — since before the nation’s inception — marginalized, ignored and manipulated by an American society historically structured on class and privilege.

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” all our nation’s school districts would offer equivalent high-level educations for all of America’s students. The wealthy privileged would not be advantaged by sending their children to elite private schools because all Americans would consider our public schools our most treasured asset. Our public schools would be where all our children learn a shared civic commitment to each other and to society by becoming “responsible, self-reliant adults.”

If we lived in the “best of all possible worlds,” America would not have a 150-year history of imperialism, colonialism and aggression. We would not have waged endless wars that have financially drained our economy. We would not have senselessly sacrificed our sons and daughters or alienated much of the world with our hubris and self-righteous arrogance.

But we don’t live in “best of all possible worlds.” And that’s the rub I have with the Republican Party. They have become the Party of “No.” Rather than address the serious issues confronting America, they offer simplistic, discredited ideas such as “trickle down economics” or “nation building.”

If we can agree that developing “responsible, self-reliant adults” is a worthy national objective, let’s test and evaluate Republican economic/civic solutions such as we are now witnessing in the state of Kansas.

And if our solutions “fail,” whether Republican or Democrat, we have no choice but to keep on trying.

Robert Oppenheimer suggested, “The optimist thinks this is the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears it is true.” True or not, we are obligated to improve life for all Americans.