Alarming things are happening in the world today, and as a natural consequence more and more people are casting their attention to the field of public service. This is largely a good thing. There is always a need for more informed people to run for office and enter public service.

Howard Schultz has retired from Starbucks and made overtures that he may run for president in 2020. Now (according to a new article on Vanity Fair) apparently Mark Zuckerberg is considering a run as well.

Why not? You might say. From what I have observed, once a person spends any amount of time with a large amount of wealth, their thinking begins to change. They are removed from the day to day concerns that the majority of American’s have to face.

One could argue, that the accumulation of wealth is what got us into this situation in the first place. Some elite believe their wealth gives them extraordinary privilege over others. They may feel they know better than the government how to utilize funds.

Many of the wealthy are being driven by a rise of an ideology called Neoliberalism that has slowly crept in and taken hold of society over the course of our lifetime. The basic tenant of this ideology is that man is primarily ruled by competition.

What is wrong with a competition driven society? To start with, the Freakonomic effect this ideology has on the middle class. The psychological and emotional damage from the spread of these concepts of competition is bigger than you can imagine. I have seen firsthand the devastating impact of it, and how detrimental it can be to an average family.

If you look into it further, it is not much better. You will see that it spreads like a ripple through our society from indifferent, uncaring corporations all the way to murderous regimes, and man made environmental disasters.

I would argue that this mix of societal and political philosophy and economics that has been adopted and widely circulated above has had primarily the opposite effect of its makers original intent on the world.

It has concentrated wealth into a “Super Elite” class (Bernie Sanders refers to this as the “top 1/10th of the top 1% of which Zuckerberg is a member).

It also drives the rest of the populace in a desire to be part of that class (with the odds being close the lottery, or entering professional sports), and as a result since the 1960’s some of the brightest minds in our country have shifted from a desire to public service, into the financial sector, and now into technology as young people look for the paths of least resistance to try and take some control, and enact some change in the world.

I had a strong early interest in politics. However, like a lot of people, I became disillusioned with it as a career after finding out how the system truly works (growing up in a suburb of Chicago it was easy to see the effects of fighting between “Chicago Democrats” and “Downstate Republicans”).

As soon as I became aware that one power broker essentially was running the show in Illinois for decades (and passed the torch to his daughter now in power) I wondered why people even bothered to challenge the powers that be.

So, for most of my life I, and many others have felt hopeless to do anything about it. The people in power too well entrenched.

That was until the 2008 election of Barack Obama. Here, finally, was a man of the people, committed to doing things that were in the best interest of so many marginalized voices.

Barack Obama was not a perfect president (I’ll point to him having to get support from big content, and the effects that had on Aaron Swartz as an example of where I disagree with a stance from his Administration), but what Barack Obama did do was set a incredible precedent.

He showed that a smart and capable, but not particularly connected man can inspire people, rise to the top of our leadership, and institute real change.

He always shared his tax returns and I remember reviewing them and being very impressed that he gave so much of his salary to charity. These acts inspired so many of us, my wife and I included, to give away more money (that we are committed to increasing each year) to our churches and communities.

President Obama has set a precedent few people really seem to recognize, but one that progressives can build from moving forward. The precedent of an informed, educated outsider, who can build a coalition of people across party lines, and speak to the issues that millions of American’s face every day.

I was moved by a story that speaks to this, Joe Biden, while operating as the VP of the United States was close to being foreclosed on, and was debating letting go of his house.

Obama found out and told Joe he would loan him the money, but that he was not selling his house. I was impressed not only by the relatable plight of our vice president as well as the generosity of our leader.

Which comes to the point of this article.

We need more common, principled, and moral people to step up and sacrifice for their country by becoming honest, for the people, politicians.

We also need to make it a priority to get big money out of politics. Do you know what most members of Congress spend most of their time doing?

Fundraising for their next race.

No wonder our Government is constantly being gridlocked, and people feel largely under represented. The politicians who are indebted to big money donors have to vote the way their donors want them to. The un-beholden (and other than Bernie Sanders, and perhaps Keith Ellison, I am not sure how many others there may be), are far and few between. One thing is clear. We need a new model.

This is what I propose.

If Mark Zuckerberg, or any other wealthy person really wants to help this country they can. By finding progressive (my preference admittedly, though if you want to fund a conservative candidate I think it would make the system healthy and I just ask that you ask them to be bipartisan focused) candidates who are not professional politicians, and assisting them on their way to Washington D.C to work for the people, without having to worry about fundraising.

NO QUID PRO QUO. Give the support without expectation of a return. The knowledge that they are enabling average citizens to bring their life experience and knowledge to that great body of our Government can have a much bigger societal impact than a presidential bid would. After all, humility is best experienced by the powerful.

Can you imagine a world where US Congressmen and Congresswomen are people who have reached a certain point in their professions and are willing to sacrifice for their country to serve the public good?

You won’t grow wealthy doing it (if you are honest), and you may be away from your family for a extended period of time. But the rewards for all of us would be worthwhile. It would also allow people a good avenue to pivot away from careers that might not be challenging to them anymore.

It would allow members of Congress, while in D.C., to do the actual work they are there to do. To read bills, understand policy issues, meet with constituents, meet with other politicians (and work on persuading them and building relationships) without having to constantly fundraise, and go to events and parties to do more fundraising.

When back in district, these members of Congress could then work in their communities. Not just in having “Congress on your corner” get togethers, but by building bases of community resources out of their offices. Offering job support, building networks for resources, etc. It would allow members of Congress to actually work in their districts. Volunteering their time, and working to the benefit of their constituents.

This type of system will only happen if we have more civilian legislators (as opposed to professional politicians).

From the people, for the people, by the people truly.

I want a President or Representative who at one time has only had $500 in their bank account, no job, and a family to support.

I want a President or Representative that perhaps was forced to make the decision to go without health insurance for years because they just could not afford it.

I want a President or Representative who understands what it is like to be a ordinary citizen, alone and facing a steep uphill climb towards their American Dream.

I want a President or Representative who has freely volunteered their time helping other people, not just giving away less money than they earn in interest every year.

I want a President or Representative who sees what is happening in our culture with the increase in corporations and universities cutting corners by relying on contractors who receive no benefits and can be fired at anytime.

I want a President or Representative who will prepare the country for the coming technology I see being developed around me on a daily basis. Technology that will begin disrupting jobs at the bottom, and leaving many feeling even more hopeless than they do now.

How will we evolve as a country if the majority of the politicians cannot understand the average American, much less a family that does not know where their next meal is coming from?

How are they going to relate to a coal miner who is unprepared for the new world that is being made, and can no longer be dependent on an industry that supported their family for decades?

We need leaders who will think about ALL American’s when they make their decisions, and not just the American’s at the top 5%+. We need principled leaders who are able to stand up to powerful interests, and better yet large groups of them forming progressive and conservative coalitions.

We need to create a society that values altruism and service as the defining characteristics in how we choose our leaders, not charisma and money.

I’d say to anyone who was really wealthy and thinking about entering politics. If you want to start truly helping our country. A country that allowed you to develop into the incredible success you have become, you could do so in a truly selfless way.

Work closely with President Obama as he begins redeveloping the Democratic Party, and identifying, training, and supporting the future leaders of this country. Give them access to technology experts, and give new political candidate entrants free, no strings attached funding.

That would permanently develop your legacy to the world. A legacy of a person who put their own personal aspirations aside, and used the resources at their disposal to fix a corrupt system, and to enable hundreds, or thousands of others to be able to fulfill their dreams of service to their country.

You could devote the rest of your life to fixing all the damage that has been done to the world over the last 50 years, and also enable opportunity for hundreds if not thousands of people.

That would make a person truly great.