As Heroes Stood

Written June, 2004

Mine eyes have seen the horror of the towers falling down.
I have stood before the Pentagon and watched the fire’s crown.
I’ve felt the jets fly over me to fight the coming foe
As heroes stood their ground.

Glory, glory hallelujah
Glory, glory hallelujah
Glory, glory hallelujah
As heroes stood their ground.

The blood of martyred children calls for peace and freedom’s reign.
The tears we shed for those lost loves will never end our pain.
We’ll always vie for liberty to honor all their names
As we go marching on.

When heroes stand united there will be a victory.
Amid the morning glories honor stands forth mightily.
The martyrs crowned and heroes proved will lead our joyful throng
As we go marching on.

There are no terrors strong enough to end Democracy.
Deep within our bosom grows a yearning to be free.
Beyond the bonds of death and hell we’ll raise our banner high
As we go marching on.

Glory, glory hallelujah
Glory, glory hallelujah
Glory, glory hallelujah
As we go marching on.

Spirit of Democracy

Democracy is government of, by, for people

• Govern by consent of the people
• Committed to rule of law
• People have the right to
  
  - Vote
  - Participate
  - Freedom of speech
  - Petition government
  - Dissent
  - Civil disobedience

Respect Personal Rights

• Security
• Know
• Own property
• Privacy / property
• Physical privacy of personal
  
  - Information
  - Communications
  - Space
  
  
• Free from surveillance

Respect Democratic Diversity

• Right to believe differently
• Right to act differently

Due Process of law

• Judicial Fairness / Justice
• Equality before the law
• Equal protection under law
• Abide by judicial fairness
• No arbitrary
  
  - Seizure
  - Detention

Fundamental Freedoms

• Substantively upheld
• Judicial due processes
• Freedom of
  
  - Conscience
  - Religion
  - Thought
  - Belief
  - Expression
  - Press
  - Freedom

Fundamental legal rights

• Right to
  
  - Life
  - Liberty
  - Security
  
  
• Right of due
  
  - Search/Seizure
  - Detention
  - Imprisonment
  
  
• Rights on arrest / detention
  
  - Promptly informed
  - Given proper reasons
  - Retain / instruct counsel
  - Access without delay
  - Informed of legal rights
  - Substantative evidence
  - Release invalidly detained
  
  
• Rights of charged person
  
  - Informed without delay
  - Tried in reasonable time
  - Not compelled to witness
  - Presumed innocent
  - Not denied due bail
  - Trial by jury
  - Not guilty by omission
  - No double jeopardy
  - Benefit lesser punishment
  
  
• Right to
  
  - No cruel treatment
  - Witness protection
  - An interpreter

Express Loyalty

• Right of Civic Nationalism
  
  - Shared rights/freedoms
  - Common values
  - Be patriotic
  
  
• Right of ethnic identity
• Right to honor heritage

Act Responsibly

• Understand and obey laws
• Participate in democracy
• Vote in elections
• Allow others their
  
  - Rights
  - Freedoms
  
  
• Honor multicultural heritage
• Informed political activities
• Better your
  
  - Communities
  - Country as a whole
  
  
• Build community well-being
• Steward other's welfare
• Engage in public discourse
  

Strive for Equality

• Equality before the law
• Equal protection under law

What IsDemocracy? (U.S. Department of State - International Information Programs)

http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/whatsdem/homepage.htm

Commitment & Mission

Commitment

I am dedicated to expanding the use of democracy in social, political, and economic enterprises around the world.

Brief Mission Statement

My mission is to build a world-wide network of people and businesses committed to implementing democratic ideals.

Comprehensive Mission Statement

My mission is to acquire, accumulate, and distribute public and private funds to build, develop, educate, facilitate, grow, and evolve a world-wide network of cooperative and commercial businesses comprised of individuals, microenterprises, as well as small, medium, and large non-profit and profit-oriented organizations under every form of ownership that are committed to implementing democratic ideals in their lives, businesses and communities, as well as their national and international spheres of influence.

Vision

Wealth and Access

All people and communities will build wealth and develop better access to the goods and services needed to improve their lives during seasons of prosperity and to sustain them in times of need.

Cooperation, Not Exploitation

Exploitation largely will be supplanted by commercial and cooperative enterprises founded upon democratic principles, fair market competition, and the equitable distribution of wealth.

Less Government

Government budgets, debts, taxes, and controls over our lives will be reduced as more cooperative and responsive democratic businesses and institutions emerge.

Peace and Prosperity

Businesses, societies, and governments of the people, by the people, and for the people always will provide the world its greatest hope for peace and prosperity.

Model and Disseminate

The creative lives and businesses we build and support will exemplify and model successful forms of economic democracy and enthusiastically will disseminate their acquired knowledge and expertise throughout their respective communities and countries of residence.

Collaboration and Investment

People in public service, private sector leadership positions, and philanthropic endeavors around the world will embrace our vision, seek our knowledge and expertise, collaborate with us to solve problems, and invest in our ideas and successful business ventures.

Achievement

The realization of our vision will be achieved through the diligence, active participation, self actualization, and utimately the self transcendence of people from many nations that are fully employed in the service and care of their fellow beings.

Ideals

Fair Compensation - Equity

I believe in the fair and competitively determined compensation of all factors of production, their democratic partipation in decision-making, and in the equitable distribution of business generated wealth to all factors based on their contributions to success.

Inclusion

I believe in the inclusion of customers, suppliers, employees, and all stakeholders in business decision-making and the equitable sharing of the rewards derived from all mutually beneficial transactions.

Human Rights

I believe in upholding and supporting fundamental human rights in all aspects of personal life, business, and society.

Improve and Empower

I believe in improving the social condition, education, standard of living, quality of life, health and well being of all segments of society, as well as fully employing and empowering them in the economy and in all parts of the government and society.

Free Markets

I believe in the fair and democratic removal of barriers to free market operations and trade, both domestically and internationally, as democracy progresses throughout the world.

No Preferential Control

I believe in the fair and democratic removal of artificial government incentives, policies, or laws that perpetuate the control of one factor of production over all others.

Status and Responsibility

I believe that all forms of business are composed of people who are more or less unified by law and agreement to serve and meet the needs or desires of others, and as such, are afforded the status of a person by public consent and legal accomodations.

Rational Democracy

I believe that democratically motivated and controlled businesses generally actrationally, creatively, and responsibly.

Greatest Good at Least Cost

I believe that democratically determined decisions, when made in free and open societies, with the best available information and technology, provide all factors of production, their resident communities, and the world at large, with the greatest economic, social, and environmental benefits available, at the lowest long-run economic, social, and environmental costs possible.

Accountability

I believe that all businesses and their constituents are individually, as well as severally and collectively accountable as legal persons for their actions.

Core Values

I highly value the following definitions and attributes.

• Cooperation
  
  Cooperate means to work or act together toward a common end or purpose. Cooperation must be given to succeed.
  
  
• Innovation
  
  Change is inevitable. Innovation is imperative.
  
  
• Democracy
  
  Democracy is leadership of the people, by the people, for the people.
  
  
• Leadership
  
  Leadership is inspiring people to cooperate.
  
  
• Commitment
  
  Commitment means always cooperating.
  
  
• Trust
  
  Trust is confidence in yourself, the commitment of others, and the inspiration and efficacy of humanities highest ideals.
  
  
• Communication
  
  Communication means actively listening more than speaking, encouraging trust, developing ideas into cooperative actions, and living by your personal intentions and the ideals of democracy.
  
  
• Integration
  
  - Love motivates actions.
  - Change and vision inspire us to adapt and innovate.
  - Commitment, communication, and leadership focus our energies.
  - Trust channels us toward our highest aspirations.
  - Faith and courage sustain us.

Personal Intentions

My intentions are to:

1. Treat others and myself with respect, kindness, and unconditional positive regard.
   
2. Live healthy and happily, expressing and encouraging greatness from myself and others, striving for excellence, balance, harmony, and goodness in all that I do, and fully actualizing my time, talents, and spiritual gifts for the benefit of all.
   
3. Work for more freedom of choice and expression in the conduct of my life and in the lives of others, and for the responsible exercise of those freedoms.
   
4. Write and speak out openly, clearly, forthrightly, and in a manner that is truthful, meaningful, and uplifting.
   
5. Encourage acts of kindness, creativity, beauty, goodness, tolerance, benevolence, cooperation, courage, humility, justice, mercy, and generosity.
   
6. Travel often, easily, and safely being welcomed, respected, and cared for with due regard, while respecting all people, their heritages and environments, and abiding by their laws and customs.
   
7. Learn or experience something positive or uplifting from every person, place, or situation encountered.
   
8. Give freely, lovingly, quietly, and appropriately from my abundance and encourage others to do likewise.
   
9. Promote freedom and democracy, defend the rights of all living beings, human or otherwise, and help resolve disputes or disagreements judiciously, fairly, expeditiously, and mercifully.
   
10. Support laws, policies, initiatives, businesses, programs, projects, personal acts, or artistic expressions that today are manifestations of the Spirit of Democracy embedded in the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights (http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html), as well as advocates or testaments of that Spirit to future generations.