I don’t typically discuss politics with my family.  It’s not that I don’t enjoy healthy disagreements; it’s just that a few years back when every political discussion inevitably led to the latest Rush Limbaugh view being quoted as both factual and reasonable that I decided to walk away.  I mean really, if you are going to have an opinion, at least have it be your own.  Then we’ll talk.  So I’ve learned to stick to lighter subjects.  “What do you think of the Pope?” comes to mind.

But when my niece posted the video “Burning Down the House:  What Caused Our Economic Crises?” to her Facebook page last night, I decided it might be time to bring a healthy discussion back to the table. I realized that by not speaking up about some fundamental truths, I was actually contributing to the problem.  By not sharing our history, we could lose the benefit of hindsight and wind up making the same mistakes again. 

Let me first tell you about my niece. 
She is smart and educated (they are different, you know) – she’s graduating with a Master’s Degree in less than 1/3 of the time it took me to get my undergraduate degree. She works extremely hard. Not to mention that she is beautiful and generous and kind and great fun.  If I had children, I would be patting myself on the back every single day if they turned out that fantastic.  She is Gen Y.  She represents our future.

Now let me recap this video. 
In the interest of transparency, feel free to search "You Tube" to view any of the 8 versions of the above-mentioned video and form your own opinion. Here is mine.  It uses illogical reasoning and conveniently pastes items together to create an impression of cause and effect.  It highlights text from reliable media to push its agenda and convey an air of truth.  But in actuality it is just one more video with traditional blame-placing political rhetoric – this time it just happens to take the form of a made-for-“You Tube” PowerPoint.  To me it represents our past.

So here’s my problem. 
How will we ever help future generations learn from our past mistakes if we are all so busy distorting what should be 20/20 hindsight? How will we ever be a part of creating a new and better future generation if we keep perpetuating the destructive practices of our past.  Our finger pointing is sabotaging our future.

In my niece’s defense, she is not necessarily agreeing with the content of this video, but merely looking to start a conversation as part of a search for her own truth.  But if we continue to color our history with positioning, opinion, and blame, with distorted cause and effect, will she ever be able to find that truth?  We are only setting ourselves up for more of the same. 

Getting back to business.
In my business life I can best equate the scenario to the benefits of creating a learning organization.  Research shows that corporations that view mistakes as an inevitable bump in the road to progress are ultimately more innovative and flexible.  And when you are savvy enough to set up a system that objectively captures the processes – including the mistakes – so that everyone in your organization can learn from them, you never have to worry about wasted energy and making the same mistake twice.  Taking fear and blame out of the equation helps these corporate cultures thrive.  Shouldn’t we want the same for our government?

Some history and lessons learned
Granted, my history is not quite as exciting as the Tudors.  But it is no less valuable.  I spent a great deal of my career in the financial industry – a good portion of that time managing training departments for sub-prime lenders.  I managed foreclosed real estate for a national bank in the aftereffects of the Savings & Loan crises in the late 80s and early 90s.  There was a lot of blame placing going on then too.  Tax reform, deregulation, inflation…sound familiar?  What did I learn from our mistakes?

• Sub-prime loans are not by definition a losing proposition, some sub-prime portfolios actually perform the same or better than conventional portfolios.  Unsound underwriting practices will always come back to haunt you.
• The Community Reinvestment Act does not force banks to put bad loans on the books.  At its foundation, it ultimately just prevents red-lining.  Which unfortunately would be a reality if it weren’t for the Act.  Yes, really.
• People who need sub-prime loans are not deadbeats, losers and degenerates.   Predatory lenders are deadbeats, losers and degenerates.  Not all sub-prime lenders are predatory lenders.  Some actually provide a very valuable service.  I could tell you stories about people the companies I worked for have helped that would bring tears to you eyes.  Sometimes life just throws you some hard knocks (layoffs, divorce, illness to name just a few that none of us are immune to) and it's life-reviving to have a way back and a chance for a normal life.
• Placing blame and practicing partisan politics is not going to get us out of our current mess.  We have to stop the rhetoric and participate in a real conversation if we are ever going to stop repeating the past. 

Use your voice.  Share your history.
I have to voice this because I want more for my niece.  I want more for this next generation.  I want them to learn from our mistakes and not make them again.  I want them to know that the fundamental democratic truths our Nation is founded on are sound, and that complacency – not big oil, not lobbyists, not CEO pay, not terrorism – is the enemy of democracy.  I want to set the right example.  I want to demonstrate what it looks like to craft sustainable, responsible, ethical solutions that keep this Nation great.  I want them to have more than hope; I want them to know it can be done. 

And when they go in search of their truth, I want them to be able to find it.  So please, join the conversation, share your history, and help me keep it 20/20.