“But what is truth? Is truth unchanging law?

We both have truths—are mine the same as yours?”

—Pontius Pilate, “Jesus Christ Superstar”

South Asian-American entrepreneur and former GOP Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy did us all a huge favor a few weeks ago. He promulgated a concise and thought-provoking list of statements that summarized many of his fundamental beliefs—from “God is real” and “There are only two genders” to “Human flourishing requires fossil fuels” and “The nuclear family is the greatest form of governance known to mankind.” (I won’t put the whole list here; it’s not hard to find it online. Heck, he’s even published it on T-shirts and expanded it into at least one book.) 

He just calls them “Truths,” though to me most of them seem far from being self-evident or axiomatic, and they are quite open to further discussion. But I say “he did us a favor” for several reasons. In an age of obfuscation and shifty language, I appreciate the clarity and directness of his assertions. They give one something solid to respond to, something to push against, something to build on.

He also invites us, perhaps unintentionally, to come up with our own lists—to examine our own philosophies of life, economics and politics, and to try to distill them into similarly digestible bits. Here, for example, are some of mine.

1. All human beings are born equal in rights and dignity, and no one should be above the law. 

(That one comes from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I think.)

2. Nature is real. Her laws are real. Violating or ignoring them conveys real consequences, with no clemency or appeal.
3. The profit motive has no place in the provision of health care.
4. If they want a smaller government, citizens must accept greater responsibility. 
5. We should not say “That government is best that governs least”; rather, “That nation is best that least requires governing.”
6. War is not inevitable. Peace is always possible—but to achieve and maintain it requires skill, hard work and wisdom, among other things. Mere strength is not enough.
7. Human flourishing requires reliable sources of clean air and water, nutritious food, resilient communities and healthy ecosystems.
8. Diversity can and should be a strength. “Harmony” is a more realistic goal than “unity.”
9. In a democracy, voting is necessary but insufficient. Citizens have a responsibility to keep themselves engaged and well informed, and to critically assess all the information.
10. Social change is inevitable, but it can neither be impeded nor hastened. It will happen when it must, and not one moment before.
11. The institutions we call the State and the Market should serve The People, not the other way around.
12. I believe in the “Upward Trend”—that our long-term development and progress as a species will persist despite short-term setbacks and mistakes. 

And so on.

I invite you, dear reader, to attempt a similar exercise. Let’s not wait for others to serve us their versions of Truth on a platter—much less force them down our throats. Let’s search for our truths, remembering that others can have different ones. Let’s each lay out what we see; then we can compare notes. Who knows—we might find we have enough in common to build a country.