A while ago I pointed out that wealthy people owe a lot to the society that helped them earn their wealth. I stand by what I said then.
Today I want to start by saying the same thing about those of us who are fortunate enough to be professors at universities like Harvard. We owe a lot to other people, and I’m mindful of that every day.
With people who are enterprising and lucky enough to be rich, there’s an easy way to give back to society. You can pay taxes, which I believe should be progressive.
With people like me who are smart and lucky enough to be professors at a place like the school where I teach, how we give back is a little trickier.
I try to give back by trying to make American society even better than it is already.
I could leave it at that, but I want to say more today.
The person I expect to be running against come November—the one with the red truck he likes to drive around in when elections roll around—likes to criticize me for being a Harvard elitist. I can get defensive about that and say he’s the real elitist and so on.
But I want to say something else today. I think people can have a point when they worry about a professor like me who wants to make the world a better place.
I want to talk about why they can have a point. And I want to talk about how I get that point.
So here goes.
I don’t think the real issue is whether I have fancy tastes in books or food or architecture, any more than horses or car elevators are the real issue with my opponent or Mitt Romney.
The real issue for Scott Brown and Mitt Romney and for me too is whether we get what people who aren’t as lucky as us live with every day.
I understand that people can wonder whether a professor who wants to make the world better looks down on other people. I understand that people can wonder whether someone who has my passion for protecting people against rip-offs gets that all of us, middle class people and poor people as well as rich people, need to be accountable.
My answer is very simple. Yes, I get it.
It does not work either for the people who are supposedly being helped or for society to have a system in which adults are treated as dependents. Bill Clinton was right to junk the old welfare system in favor of a system with more accountability.
As a deep-dyed believer in consumer protection, I make no apologies whatsoever for my activism against rip-offs of people by banks and other businesses. I’m proud that it’s no longer possible for banks to impose huge overdraft protection charges on unwitting consumers, thanks to legislation I championed.
At the same time, I want to make very clear that I believe in freedom to make choices, and in accountability for bad choices. If a consumer is notified and decides to authorize overdraft protection, that’s her business.
It’s all about recognizing a simple principle. Accountability is for everyone. It’s for rich people and for poor people. It’s for banks and for middle-class people. It’s for every single one of us.
I get that. I believe deeply in that principle.
If I am lucky enough become your Senator, I will keep the principle of accountability for all close to my heart. I will bear it in mind on every vote I cast. I promise you that.
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