Progress is learning from our mistakes

I had a student, today, remind me what the essence of progress in history, in a culture, in government, and for individuals and anyone is.

Progress is learning. It is trial and error. It is learning from our mistakes. And if you are like the students that I teach at the alternative special education school in Topeka where I work, progress is learning from sometimes serious and compounded mistakes.

He reminds me why I don't romanticize liberalism, leftism, radicalism, socialism, communism or any of the causes of the left.

So I don't write foolish and dangerous headlines like this one.

Chavez foes rally against reform

The "reform" that leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's opponents are rallying against is a constitutional amendment that would extend and entrench his power in some seriously undemocratic directions, as well as legislation that would consolidate power in the central government over local governments, establish much greater control over Venezuela's Central Bank, and undermine a fundamental value of a liberal democracy, property freedoms.

Progress is not found in an ideology, a party, or on our left or our right.

Progress is learning. And learning is found in greater freedom. And the responsibility that comes with it.

As one of my ninth graders said, today, progress is made when we make mistakes and learn from them.

And the most important mistake we are making that we need to learn from, today, is romanticizing leftist repressive instincts as progress rather than regress. Progress is when we get honest with ourselves about our intentions, our actions, and their consequences and face honestly when our efforts are failing even when we intend otherwise.

Progress is when we make mistakes - like trying to force and pressure our way, generally unsuccessfully, through every problem we face and call it progress, a contradiction in terms, really - and learning to face those mistakes honestly so that we can learn how to make better choices in the future. Holding your ground on an important principle or idea can create progress. Imposing yourself on others when what is needed is for them to internalize a commitment to that idea or principle is not progress and never will or could be.

Progress in our souls is when our consciences catch up with out mistakes. It is not an inevitable march, push, or battle forward. It is when we take responsibility for screwing up, including for marching on the backs of others when we don't get our way.

The Nazis pushed and pressured and forced their way forward and called it progress. The Soviets did the same. And so has almost every despotic regime and terrorist group or destructive gang or gangleader with any serious instinct for power.

But propaganda for progress is not the same thing as the substance of progress.

And the substance of progress was captured by my ninth grade student, today.

Progress is making mistakes and learning from them. Whether that be an individual, a culture, a government, or all of the above.

Progress is learning. It is having the freedom to try new things and to screw up. And it is learning from our mistakes. But progress is only found when we face the mistake honestly so that we can learn the lessons that needs to be learned.

Sometimes ninth graders are just smarter than national leaders. Especially national leaders who are more in love with their power than they are committed to real progress.

Love,
Ben