In an N&O article of June 26, Democratic candidate Barack Obama was said to support helping the needy as a "basic part of our Democratic philosophy." That statement started me thinking about what comprises my "Democratic Philosophy." My guess is that few of us ever write out what leads us to support either a Democratic or Republican party candidate. In the interest of contributing to a political philosophy and possibly starting a political discussion, I have written the following set of convictions.

I begin with the Declaration of Independence and the Preamble to the Constitution as the foundation of my political philosophy. Equality, freedom and justice are concepts fundamental to all democratic government. Accordingly, I believe in the dignity and equality of all persons, equality of opportunity, equality before the law and equality in the eyes of our fellow citizens. I believe in the freedom to pursue individual goals within limits imposed by the rights of others to pursue their goals and by the claims of the common good. And, finally, I believe in justice for all persons, regardless of their status in life and in fair treatment for all.

I believe that government derives its powers from the people, and that the role of government positively is an expression of the will of the people; I believe in empowering government to act as a positive instrument for developing and implementing just public policy, that its role goes beyond the limits imposed by national defense and domestic order. However, I also believe that government does not have an appropriate role to play in all dimensions of life and, indeed, cannot provide solutions for all individual and social problems.

As indicated in the Preamble of the Constitution, one of the responsibilities of our government is to promote the general welfare, i.e., the health and well-being of all the people. When voluntary initiatives cannot meet the people's needs, various levels of government should endeavor to do so.

I believe that government should form partnerships with the private and not-for-profit sectors to achieve desirable public policy goals, e.g., public education and better health, and that the federal government should form partnerships with the states and private sector to achieve such ends. When necessary, the federal government should take the initiative in developing such partnerships.

I believe that when the private sector can act to achieve desirable public policy goals, that government should not interfere unreasonably to make it difficult to operate; rather, it should assist the private sector to operate effectively and without excessive regulation and interference.

Further, the health and vitality of any society must be grounded in strong primary social units, such as the family, and individuals and families should be expected, encouraged, and aided, if necessary by government, to support themselves through honest labor. Government should develop policies and programs designed to create work for all able citizens and to enable all citizens to perform to the extent of their potential.

All citizens should be expected to share in support of the common good. To that end, I support institutions which bring persons together as equals and build bonds of equality, e.g., the military draft, the public schools, etc. When some are paid to put their lives at risk in support of the common defense, as in a volunteer army, I believe that it weakens the bonds of equality and responsibility for the actions and policies of government.

A corollary of this is that persons should be expected to support the work of government according to their means. Accordingly, the tax system should be designed so that wealthier citizens are taxed at higher rates than poorer ones but not so as to create an excessive disincentive to work and save; that the tax system should be used to foster desirable public policy objectives, e.g., charitable giving, savings, and the control of unrestrained accumulation of wealth at the expense of fellow citizens.

Finally, I believe that the Democratic Party comes closer than any other political organization to expressing these beliefs. I believe that since political parties are essential for the enactment of political purpose and public policy, it is also essential that a party be identified which can proximate my own values and social goals. This is not to say that the Democratic Party will inevitably and always represent my views sufficiently for me to claim it as my own, but until it fails to do so I shall be a Democrat.