Everything You Want to Know About Andrew Yang & the Forward Party
*But the Pundits, Politicians and Parties Hope You Won’t Ask
A Virtual Discussion Hosted by Politics for the People and Open Primaries
Wednesday, January 12th at 3pm EDT
Register here today!
Andrew Yang has written a brilliant book, an honest and clear-eyed appraisal of the state of our society, the problems we face, the causes of those problems, and some ideas on how we can fix things up. Now, this may be standard fare these days as we live in some pretty dire times with a lot of people hurting and a lot of people with opinions about what should be done to alleviate this pain. But I think Yang’s take on things stands out. I find him startlingly original in much of his thinking, and he casts a wide net in his analysis.
Admittedly, he didn’t come up with all these ideas by himself; facing a problem, he talks about consulting with people who have focused on and thought about and written about that problem. But he does take responsibility for coming up with doable responses to the problem to fix it. Just one quick example will suffice: Yang sees the impending demise of local news organizations everywhere, in this digital and world-wide internet age, as a serious problem in a democracy, as they are key in effecting civil engagement in the population. His solution is for the society, the government, to subsidize them, not for any ideological purpose, but as a practical solution. Andrew Yang is practical, and not ideological. And he gives generous credit when plugging creative solutions others have put forward, like top-five or ranked-choice voting and open primaries from Katherine Gehl, Michael Porter and others.
Yang is a very astute observer of human nature and has a hands-on CEO’s understanding of what humans need to function well. He seems to not be constrained by ideology or previous ways of looking at things, but is willing to head into new territory and to think outside the box. I also find Yang to be movingly open about his own shortcomings and vulnerabilities, as when he urges us to make liberal use of grace, tolerance and forgiveness in judging and dealing with one another (and ourselves), because we are all human, and we will mess up.
I am particularly in favor of his call for people to get involved and build a movement for change. Although I hope he runs again for president, I don’t think he has run as the one who will save us, but as one who accepts responsibility, and is willing to put himself forward as a leader. I think this is a very important book for anyone who wants to impact on our present and future.
Richard Ronner is a nurse practitioner and a long time independent activist. Richard is from Queens.
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Join us Wednesday, January 12th
at 3pm EDT
For a Virtual Discussion
With Forward Author Andrew Yang
Sponsored by Politics for the People and Open Primaries
CLICK HERE TO RSVP!
