Come Together

"Got to be a joker. He just do what he please."

In July, 1969, Dr. Timothy Leary was giving serious consideration to making a run for the US presidency. He had just given a popular series of lectures at UC Berkeley (and at other colleges) and was widely known for having told Americans to "Turn on. Tune in. Drop out."

Leary's first goal was to win the California gubernatorial election against Ronald Reagan. Leary was busted for drug possession, and his career in politics wound up being permanently derailed. However, Leary's campaign left some thought-provoking ideas behind:

"The basic function of government is to protect individuals against organized gangs and groups."

Leary wasn't entirely wrong about that, was he? At every level, people seek protection from groups -- in part because the individual needs to know that she has a voice. The individual has to matter. Any elected official worth his salt knows this and keeps it in his heart; politicians who forget this wind up bringing upon themselves the wrath of the people. This is a basic expectation of government: that it help individuals where they cannot help themselves.

"Another basic function of government is to entertain/educate."

At times, we in education laughingly refer to our service as "edutainment." Articles have been written for and against the connection between education and entertainment. Leary believed that the two ideas could go hand in hand. He further expressed that government should take on the edutainment role itself. Sometimes comedy is the best means of providing information. Sometimes, though, seriousness is called for. A good politician would be able to distinguish between those times.

Leary's campaign, however, was shortsighted at times and narrowly-focused. As a "drug guru," he pushed more strongly for legalization than for anything else. Had Leary become governor of California, his lack of leadership on other issues would surely have shown. But he was right about one thing for sure: there was room for everyone in the process. His tongue-in-cheek slogan, "Come together: join the party!" was somewhat inspirational. He didn't want to exclude his opposition; instead, he wanted everyone to be taken seriously.

We may not need all of Leary's shenanigans, but we certainly need his sense of inclusiveness today. Aren't faculty, staff, and administration equally deserving of participation? By virtue of the examples that we present to others, shouldn't we all be engaged in education? And maybe...just maybe...a little entertainment, too?