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Because of the political and moral choices facing us as a nation, 2018 may be the most important year our nation has faced in generations.

That may sound hyperbolic, but I would argue it is not at all.

To begin with, in a democracy politics and morality are inextricably linked.

When people choose their own government, they are making moral choices about the kind of society they will have.

Democratic governments are an extension of the beliefs and values of the people who create them.

At the same time, democracies are constantly reforming themselves as beliefs and values mature and grow, not least because of events in their history that profoundly influence their self-understanding.

When America was founded we were a people with limited moral vision, as our acceptance of slavery and our indiscriminately killing of native Americans and destroying their culture graphically demonstrated.

Yet there have been seminal moments in our history when we have been called to a higher moral vision that made us a better nation, far from perfect or even good at times, but better nonetheless.

2018 is yet another one of those moments.

A little more than a year ago a man was elected President who is proving he not only does not know how to conduct himself as the nation’s leader, but has shown himself to be immature, compulsive, incendiary with words, and divisive in actions.

Worst of all, Donald Trump has proven that he has no regard for telling the truth. Almost daily he makes claims that the news media exposes as false and/or intentionally deceptive.

His response is never contrition, but an attack on the messengers telling the truth about him by insisting they are purveyors of “fake news.”

Making matters worse is the fact that the Republican Congress has shown no sign of being willing to put the good of the nation ahead of party loyalty.

So in one year we have become a nation whose government treats poor people as if they are lazy and irresponsible, children as if they are expendable, and the rich as if they are golden.

All of these actions/inactions embody moral beliefs about what we the people value, about the way we think about justice, peace, kindness, economic fairness, respect and compassion for others.

Recognizing the link between politics and morality holds the key to us as a people accepting responsibility for what is happening in and to our nation.

The simple truth is, politicians are in a position to make the decisions they make because we put them there.

That means we bear responsibility for the moral values those decisions embody.

Every law that is passed, every policy that is adopted, every appointment that is made, in the end reflects what we the people believe and believe in.

We may say “politicians” do what they want, not what the people want, but that becomes an excuse for inaction on our part when we keep electing them to office.

Some people are not bothered about what is happening to the country. They like Donald Trump because they are like him.

But 2018 can be the year the majority of Americans say we are bothered, we are disgusted, when we say we are a better people morally than the political decisions being made in Washington.

That is why this may be the most important year our nation has faced in generations.

My hope is that we will be up to the challenge.