Government's purpose

There is only one legitimate purpose for government.  It's embodied in the words, 'public interest'.

One person governs himself.  Two people cooperate or go their separate ways.  More must agree on some things for the sake of each and all.  Thus, government and public interest.

The public interest refers to the "common well-being" or "general welfare." The public interest is central to policy debates, politics, democracy and the nature of government itself.

There is continual debate about what that actually means, but everyone is aware of the price if it's done poorly.

Governance, then, particularly 'good governance' is about how well a government serves the interests of its' citizens, collectively and individually. Note the increasingly frequent uprisings and protests; from Egypt to Syria to Wall Street.  And Kyrgyzstan (left).  

Former South African president Thabo Mbeki in Uganda addresses issues of governance (right).

Globalization, and the new citizenry
Are we further obliged to 'not harm' other countries with our actions?  That's the new question; what's the international impact of our national policies.

After US regulatory changes, Wall Street ran amok and slammed the world marketplace. The 2007-8 upheaval spiked inflation in Kenya to around 30% for a couple of years. Here, we were angry and worried about our retirement investments.  In Kenya and elsewhere in the developing world, people went hungry and died.

The price of corn meal, the staple on which the poor survive, doubled.  When you spend more than half your income on food, such a change is deadly.  We did that to them.  The U.S. government mandated 10% ethanol program contributed to the price increase.

The consumer price index in Kenya is up by 30+% since then.  The change in the US is 7% for the same period.

In the US, we were annoyed by the partisan scrap over the debt ceiling last summer.  The EU was struggling a bit with the Greek bankruptcy.  In Kenya and elsewhere, living costs continue to rise rapidly and people continue to starve.


The emerging question on the world's agenda as we labor over the environmental impact of our existence; now we must also consider the impact of national economic policies as well.  It's life or death on each front, and there are no simple answers to be found.

Have you thought much about your part in all this while it plays out?  Things are moving rather quickly now; it's worth a thought or two.

A UNESCO study highlights wider human development impacts of the '08 financial crisis specifically, including the prospect of an increase of between 200,000 and 400,000 in infant mortality. Child malnutrition, already a rising trend, will be one of the main drivers of higher child death rates. "Millions of children face the prospect of long-term irreversible cognitive damage as a result of the financial crisis," says Montjourides.  A few hundred folks did all of this.

Nothing.  Nothing can describe the blinding fury evoked in a father's heart against the perpetrators for such actions.

Money! and reaching your goals ...

The American Dream!  

• House?
• Cars?
• Vacations?
• College for the kids?
• Retirement?
• Having enough?

We didn't begin this way, but these days, our kids learn early that our appropriate goal is a comfortable life.  It's ingrained in us by everything we see and hear.  Better paying jobs, home ownership, nicer cars, nicer things, retirement funding, all are the goals of our culture, and that's the way we live.

The screwballs among us like nuns and peace corps volunteers and 'doctors without borders' don't count.  They're just odd.

Everybody knows you need to pour out your life on work and material things so you can take care of yourself and your family.  You never really get enough, though.  You always want more.

None of the world's religions, none of the world's revered philosophers, and none of the folks we admire support anything like the 'American Dream' as an acceptable life purpose.

What if ...
What if we started with a different premise? What if we chose a different purpose for our lives and then reorganized our affairs accordingly?

What if we decided the most fun we could have was in being useful to others; caring, sharing, helping, being there when needed.

You could still be a teacher or an engineer or a stay-at-home mom or a bookkeeper, but your purpose would be much larger than just your occupation, and the opportunities could mushroom into great things.

Could you still have a house and car and running water and a chance for college for your kids? Sure. Nothing wrong with those. You might choose somewhat differently though, if your goal was being able to serve others. Perhaps, perhaps not.

Casa Fiz do Mundo   (homemade world!)

"Freely you have received, freely give," we're instructed, perhaps because we're not intended to squander what we're given on more stuff for ourselves.  Having too much stuff will get in the way of giving, and giving is much more fun than getting.

(Left) These young people and their friends fill a shipping container every year with essential goods, and then they send that along with a team to a place where they work really hard.  Every year, they do this.  It's hundreds and hundreds of hours of tedious work.  Curious why? 

They serve children and their families and community in a country where life is difficult.  They love doing it, too.


It's such a great joy to make a difference.  Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, ... as though they were your own family.

What would our lives look like if we chose a different purpose?  Got the guts to work through it?  I barely know how to begin.

"I'm going to pour out my life on something.  I might as well pour it out on something that makes a difference." ~ inner-city teacher 

A father's dream ...

Nobility, grace, strength, courage, ... such, perhaps, are the hopes in a father's heart for his own gift to his wife and children, and to his world as well.

Dad was a composer, conductor, music educator... and an impressive tenor; a tuxedo type, lots of the time.  Mom was a talented soprano and was often in his work.  Dad had a long career with choirs and orchestras, college and churches and communities.

Of the hundreds of performances I attended through my childhood, I remember one best; a community performance of Handel's Messiah at Easter.  Dad assembled a composite choir of a couple hundred voices from several churches.  Along with an orchestra, they performed in a packed cathedral for Catholics and Baptists, Methodists and Presbyterians, the larger family which in those days was fairly unusual.  I remember, as the crowd stood for the chorus, the hair on the back of my neck stood up.  Many of us wept as the inspired magnificence of Handel's work swept across the hall and through each one of us.  In the days before sound systems, the voices and instruments filled the world with wonderful power and clarity.

His students were family, and it was common to have twenty of them or more over for an evening event.  They adopted mom and dad as their own parents-du-jour which meant my sister and I had a lot of siblings.

In retirement, a friend asked Dad if he would teach piano to his child.  In no time, Dad had 30 students, lessons once a week each. 

Dad passed away rather suddenly, shortly before his 70th birthday.

I heard stories about him for years afterwards.  One of the most illuminating, perhaps, was from a school teacher.  One of the boys in her class, when asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, said, "I want to be a piano teacher like Mr. Dickerson."  He was one of dad's students, and though he had no notable musical interest, he knew he wanted to be like my dad.

Nobility, grace, strength, courage; you did well, Dad.  Now, these decades later, I begin to understand your heart.

The Great Souls of the World

Have you noticed that the wealthier people are, the less time they seem to have for things that matter?  And in a given community, the poor are often the nicest ones.  The rich are perhaps pulled away by possessions and position and business... it seems that they (we) have perhaps less to offer by way of meaningful engagement.

The 'poor'?  Or could we ignore the economic distinction and instead just consider what they do?

If my experiences in the developing nations of Africa were enough, I'd say that these are the folks I'd want as neighbors.  These are the ones who unfailingly invite me to come sit and talk.  They take me into their home and make a place for me in their family time.  They bring me in and roast a few coffee beans so they can make me a cup of coffee as their welcome guest.  When I was injured and laid up, these are the ones who came each day to visit me and wept over me as I healed.  These are the ones who brought small gifts as I was leaving for home and who promised to pray for me and my family.  And they've never asked for anything.

Thank you Father,
Thank you for sunshine and rain,
     for shelter and food,
        for family and friends.
Thank you for a place to sit and rest,
     and for a place to work.
Thank you for small faces that smile for so little reason,
    and for little hands that reach out to shake mine in welcome,
       and for the giggles that accompany such formality.
Thank you for the father who gathers his family so he can introduce them
    and tell us about them one by one.
Thank you for enough to share with these gentle folks.
Thank you for the chance to be welcomed and to learn so much.
It's okay if I pray with Muslims, right?  And if they pray for me?
"Freely you have received; freely give."
     I always wondered what that was about.





So what shall we call these noble folks?  They're the ones who so freely give of the very little that they have.   'The poor' just doesn't fit, does it.



Perhaps more appropriately, these are the great souls of the world. These are the ones whom history should honor, these who in a world of greed and corruption, of wealth-chasers and life destroyers, these have lived nobly and honorably and with a good heart.

The photos here are of a precious family we met while working in Djibouti. My friend is the gracious father, here with his wife, widowed sister, and the family's nine children.  Over the years, they welcomed me each time with laughter and stories.  Great folks.  The kids are bright, courageous, and working hard to get an education.