Our organization is concerned with “the cumulative forces threatening to submerge the dignity and self esteem of the individual and with the ways in which [private realm institutions and] government policies could more effectively be directed toward coping with these forces. Foremost among them is the belief that every individual [through their choices] seeks a sense of personal identity and worth. Each person gains this partly through the development and exercise of [character and] individual capacities, partly through the sense of belonging and sharing that comes from participating in the society [with] others. In both cases, freedom to choose is indispensable to the opportunity to become a complete person. It is also essential to our self esteem that we feel able to exert some control over the forces that affect our lives.” (Elliot Richardson)
James Madison wrote: “The larger a country, the less easy for its real opinion to be ascertained, and the less difficult to be counterfeited. This is favorable to the authority of government. For the same reason, the more extensive a country, the more insignificant is each individual in his own eyes. This may be unfavorable to liberty.”
The freedom to choose, and the ability to exert some control over the forces that affect our lives, are indispensable to individual fulfillment and self-esteem. There has been a profound shift from the private realm to an active central government regarding the fulfillment of individual dignity. AIMI seeks to find a middle path that many individuals seek, and that may actually work for more individuals.
Only by the constant pursuit of balance among the elements of the private realm and the public sector can we induce the flow of events to bring us closer to where we want to go: a society in which most of us can be or become our whole selves – a society which enhances individual dignity and self esteem, the ultimate values for whose sake our political processes exist. (Thanks to E. Richardson)
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AN INDPENDENT MODERATE INDIVIDUAL | COPYRIGHT © AIMI
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