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Good jobs depend on excellent education and equal opportunity for all. It is vital that partnerships between Democrats and Republicans lead the way going forward to find common ground for the common good.

This is not a socialist agenda. Common good means we need each other. And we do. That is a fact, one which no one can deny.

We cannot achieve the common good without excellent individualized public education and equal opportunities that allow for competition with fair ground rules.

The common good allows maximum growth of human potential for a flourishing society. Excellent public education may not be for all students, but it should be available for all students.

We must set a higher bar for all human potential and remove unfair barriers. There is no such thing as freedom without personal and collaborative responsibility. Thats not socialism. Its called civil rights. It is distinct from socialism.

Addressing the common good doesnt mean advocating governmental ownership and administrative distribution of goods and/or a system of society of group living in which there is no property, as the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines socialism. The common good means figuring out together how to take care of everything from potholes to educating the next generation. It establishes essential citizen rights and responsibilities as a basis for pursuing limitless opportunities.

Our nation as a whole is not healthy. The American values of a free marketplace of ideas is in danger. This should be celebrated, encouraged, ensured, and linked with responsible strategies for progress and spending.

We already see how attempting to shut each other down only causes us to turn against each other. We must enlist those who can help create functional environments for paying close attention to discerning where misunderstandings lie and where assistance can be applied.

Our young must be challenged to serve our country in addition to the military, if we will ever hope to even the playing field. A diverse young national service corps would go a long way to eradicate bigotry and national inertia.

The possibilities for improving our country are limitless. Along with climate and coronavirus, excellent public education and a national service corps in exchange for vocational and higher education should be top bipartisan priorities so our young learn along with others with differences even as they learn according their own abilities, so our young develop a sense of responsibility to themselves and to others, so all of our citizens can build and maintain their own decent lives and sustain decent jobs for the future.

It is not a time to paint false sunny pictures but it is not a time to be demoralized and cynical.

I had a wonderful teacher who once told me when I felt overwhelmed, Amy, pick one thing. Just one thing.

The time has never been more urgent to step up and recognize we cant afford to hate politics. Leaders must re-frame politics as a conversation about common values, excellent standards and smart money.

We may want to throw our hands up and give it all up. Thats when I hear my Jewish heritage talking. It tells me although we may not finish the work, we cannot refrain from the work.

Now lets get back to work.

(Amy Brenner Mitz lives in Sugar Hill.)

More:
My Turn: Working together for common good is not socialism - Concord Monitor