Memorial Day began as Decoration Day, honoring the dead soldiers on both sides of our American Civil War. As with any holiday that becomes a three-day weekend, the original vision becomes obscured as feasting and travel overtake memory. The celebrations should continue – but they must be joined with solemn reflection on the many men and women who have died in our nation’s service. Regardless of politics or policies, this is a good day to reflect on the fallen and remember the sacrifices of our service women and men. Here is my tribute.

As I listen to the political debates, there is a missing component in the “retail” politics that fluctuate hour to hour in our data-saturated (but wisdom-deprived) world. There is much talk about Obama inheriting a terrible situation and “how much worse things would be” if he had not racked up $5 trillion in new debt. The Obama machine attacks the Romney record at Bain Capital incessantly because they have nothing significant to show for their amateurish efforts of the past four years.

The Romney campaign is a bit clearer, especially on deficits and foreign policy; however, they are also missing the larger point, though it leaks out in apocalyptic phrases.

The missing issue is, “What needs to be done for a better long-term future?” Yes, we need immediate relief for many. What is being lost are the strategic and structural decisions that will empower a future that is bright for our nation and global community.

Private-public partnership opportunities abound to rebuild infrastructure, truly reform health care, open new energy markets with both current fossil fuel resources and advanced research and unleashing ethical and effective decentralized education reform.

We can ensure the pensions of public employees by embarking in a determined and fair process of privatization with public oversight.

With best practices employed, we can save 15-20% on domestic spending programs without depriving a single person in need. We can realize the same savings in our military without harming our hurting veterans or weakening our ability to respond to crisis.

If we ask what is best for our future, we will be fiscally-disciplined, unleash entrepreneurs, shore up our infrastructure, insist on educational effectiveness and stand with all people of conscience against Islamofascist global terror. We will preserve traditional marriage while allowing all citizens to arrange their domestic situation justly. We will stop the holocaust of the unborn and open avenues of domestic adoption to qualified people. We will hold fathers and mothers legally and morally accountable for their decision to welcome a child into the world, while offering compassionate, non-judgmental care to all in need.

President Obama, and Governor Romney, how are you going to lead us into this healthier future? Do you have the courage to do what is necessary or will you continue to take the easy road of cliches and polemics? Please inspire us…but inform us as well.

The news is painful to observe. We see human tragedy on a massive scale in Africa, with little attention given to the loss of an entire generation to AIDS, genocide and religio-political warfare. In the Middle East, unveiled threats from all sides keep Israel in a state of high alert, while a dormant West criticizes the Israeli government for their refusal to accept gradual self-annihilation. Economies around the world are struggling to sort out the consequences of massive global speculation. Our Campaigner-in-Chief is doing what he does best: using our money to agitate and cover up his utter lack of leadership and skill. The Republican campaign is down to a dull roar as conservatives express concerns, evangelicals struggle with a Mormon candidate and the other leaders stay on the sidelines and position themselves for a 2016 run. Underneath the surface, there are ominous signs of our American experiment in liberty-rooted-in-virtue eroding even further. The Obama Administration’s defiance of Congress and the Supreme Court – in direct violation of their “post-partisan” 2008 ideals – does not bode well for our democratic future. If populist Executive Orders can trump judicial and legislative balances, what is left but a descent into the totalitarian abyss? Meanwhile, Republicans offer little vision to galvanize alienated constituencies that share most of their values. Our fiscal house remains a disaster. The Ryan plan may not be the answer, but it is a starting point for a painful discussion we must stop avoiding. We need a new direction. Our current trajectory posits survival (for a few years) at best, subversion and anarchy at worst. What can we do to reverse course and restore susbtantive hope? I want to offer four keys to unlocking a better future. They will not be popular with elites in both parties, so they may be rooted in reality! First, we must promote a moral and spiritual awakening that restores reverence for the Almighty and personal responsibility for individuals and families. Yes, there are structural issues of class and culture, religion and race, economic and educational opportunities that must be addressed. But change in all of these arenas begins with transformation of the heart. Schools will only be as strong as the families that send their kids off in the morning with a full stomach, clean clothes and an affirming hug. Bill Cosby’s exhortations for parental responsibility need to be magnified in all communities, regardless of economics or race. Unless a critical mass of people embrace the call to love sacrificially, turn off the toys and pay attention to their children, no amount of government spending or private charity will resverse our self-destruction. Second, we must stop spending money that does not exist. An immediate 15% cut across the board in federal spending and serious budgetary recalibration will kick-start our economy and transform local and state governments as well. This means cuts everywhere, including defense. No, we are not showing weakness when we scrutinize the fat in defense contracts or reduce our presence in some sectors of the globe. We also need to reverse the trend of incresaing food stamp usage and eliminate ads that promote them! It is time to privitize public pensions (with government oversight of investment ethics) and stop creating six-figure jobs for government employees while working-class folks struggle. Third, we must overhaul the tax code, creating a two- or three-tier system that caps at a rate low enough to stimulate investment while being as fair as possible to different income levels. Ending most deductions and special-interest breaks (like the ones that enable rock stars to call their estates “farms”) and rewarding domestic investment will keep us the leader of the free world, not by force of arms but by creativity and innovation. Fourth, we need an immigration policy that is hospitable, just and submissive to the rule of law. Voting is only for citizens and ID checks are not a violation of civil rights. Every citizen’s vote must count and corruption reduced. Why are the Democrats so afraid of confirming the identity of voters at local precincts? Why was a white man able to pose as Attorney General Eric Holder and given a ballot, even when he offered three times to show ID? If we do not confront these core issues, our disintigration will accelerate and our nation will be one more collapsed civilization on the ash heap of history. Our demise is not inevitable if we reverse course today.