EPIPHANY OF THE DAY

 POLICIES

Time was when political elections featured well-formulated policy statements, called platforms, from which voters were to choose. For example, look at the 1952 election, a time seemingly proposed as worth returning to by many Americans (of specific race and gender.)

Both political parties spelled out their aims clearly.

The Republican platform pledged to end the unpopular war in Korea, supported the development of nuclear weapons as a deterrence strategy, to fire all "the loafers, incompetents and unnecessary employees" at the State Department, condemned the Roosevelt and Truman administrations' economic policies, supported retention of the Taft–Hartley Act, opposed "discrimination against race, religion or national origin", supported "Federal action toward the elimination of lynching", and pledged to bring an end to communist subversion in the United States.

The Democrats favored a strong national defense, collective security against the Soviet Union, multilateral disarmament, repeal of the Taft-Hartley Act, equal employment opportunities for minorities and public assistance for the aged, children, blind, and the disabled, expansion of the school lunch program, and continued efforts to fight racial discrimination.

Americans chose the Republican candidate, Dwight D. Eisenhower, who claimed victory graciously, over the Democratic candidate Adlai E. Stevenson, who accepted defeat graciously.

Neither vowed to claim fraud or to spur violence over the results.

Voters then went on about their business.

Neither platform sought simply to build raw power at the expense of the common good.

Neither platform described the other party as “garbage.”

Neither platform vowed the use of religion as retribution if enacted.

Neither party employed a professional wrestler as its spokesperson.

Maybe there are some tidbits of the past that could make America an even better country.