The Politics of Personal Responsibility

The Politics of Personal Responsibility
P. Scott Cummins © 2005 The Urbane R

Our 36th District Senator, Jeanne Kohl-Welles, has been busy in Olympia this current legislative session. One of the bills she is sponsoring addresses the very real issue of “cyberbullying” in our schools. She would have school districts amend their anti-harassment laws to address the use of computers and cellular phones for intimidation or bullying.

By August 1, 2006, each school district shall amend its harassment, intimidation, and bullying prevention policy...The policy shall clarify that acts of bullying, harassment, or intimidation that are conducted via electronic means need not occur during school hours, occur on school property, or involve school computers as long as the incident has an impact on the student or educational environment....If a school district has internet use policies, the act of bullying, harassing, or intimidating another student via online means shall be included as a prohibited act and be subject to disciplinary action. ...As used in this section, "electronic" or "electronic means" means any communication where there is the transmission of information by wire, radio, optical cable, electromagnetic, or other similar means. "Electronic" and "electronic means" include, but are not limited to, communication via electronic mail, internet-based communications, pager service, cell phones, and electronic text messaging.

This provision is an unfortunate, but necessary, addition to the legal tools given school administrators for enforcement of student standards for personal responsibility and accountability. My regret is that it does not go far enough – holding parents jointly responsible for the mis-use and abuse of technology (cellular phones, laptops, PDAs) they provide to their children.

It has not gone without notice by some readers that the writing style of this columnist has been influenced by the likes of authors Tom Robbins, Roald Dahl, Tom Wolfe, and yes – Hunter S. Thompson. But what late twentieth century writer hasn’t been influenced, from college English papers to papal encyclicals? If slaving away over a hot keyboard is involved, the “gonzo”/first person style of writing has become the way to say it.


Hunter S. Thompson (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)

And we have the eccentric-to-the-end Hunter S. Thompson to thank. It is with great sadness that we mark his passing – particularly since it was a death of his own making this past week at age 67. If Thompson had ever demonstrated an inkling of migration toward conservative thought, his proclivities for booze, firearms and fast living would have quickly earned him full “wing nut” status. But because of his unabashed liberal leanings, he will forever be seen as eccentric and genuine. Thank goodness for that.


Peter Benenson (Amnesty International Photo)

Please permit a sentence or two of “gonzo” reporting about the passing of Peter Benenson, founder of Amnesty International. In 1979, about one month after the U.S. Embassy hostages were taken in Iran – I went with a group of about a dozen American student colleagues from the University of Bath in the U.K., on a winter trip to the Soviet Union. A few of us had been to Amnesty’s offices in London in the weeks prior to our departure. Bear in mind that the only American corollary to London-based Amnesty International was staff work being done by our own Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson in the United States Senate. It was no doubt Benenson’s high esteem for Jackson that led to this constituent being ushered in to meet the Amnesty International founder – who two years before had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. For me, then a twenty year old college junior, it was a golden moment.

These events were eclipsed only by that December trip to the Soviet Union – where we students, with viewpoints honed as much by Rolling Stone as any publication – descended on Moscow in true Hunter S. Thompson style. And, as it turned out, we arrived just as Soviet troops invaded Afghanistan. Given the nature of that particular superpower conflict, and American hostages taken the month before – it all made for a certain “color me war correspondent” atmosphere. These events did little to restrict, however, our hawking of blue jeans into stacks of Soviet Rubles – worthless outside the tottering Communist Empire – in an economy apparently unable to produce consumer goods except for massive quantities of Stolichnaya. It was true fear and much loathing, though in Moscow and Leningrad, not Las Vegas. And despite the inane events, we were able to accomplish our “drop” of information for a dissident Russian human rights group affiliated with Amnesty.

Nobel Peace Laureate Peter Benenson is a giant, and at 83, lived a long life worthy of celebration. Following in the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., he refined the international politics of personal involvement and public accountability. Benenson did so by putting himself into the story “gonzo” style, using the media to influence politicians in his own country - and in the most remote capitals on the planet.

When considering the tools we all have available today – from Bluetooth devices to the typewriter, instant messaging to quiet conversation – we are perhaps long since past the time for reflection on the ethics of that empowerment.

It is up to us as well, to instill in our children the lessons of personal responsibility. We can do so by contrasting the legacy of choices made by these two men. And empowering the next generation to take stock of the lessons made stark by that reflection.

If we make progress on that, just maybe our Senators won’t have to create legislative cyber-nannies, and together we can make progress on the human rights and economic potential we all deserve.