Character Building. Becoming the Caring Citizens the American Dream Is Calling Forth . . .

In strengthening American character as caring citizens to occupy our neighborhoods do you ever wonder . . .

• Is my current moral worldview limiting my success at working together with my neighbors to make public government more effective?

• Do my neighbors see me as an essential partner in building trust for effective public governance and expanding our common wealth?

• Are there skills I can develop and maintain so my caring neighbors can feel an increasing sense of trust and loyalty in our mutual partnership to make public governance effective?

• If caring neighbors see me as a source of partnership strength, are they likely to invite other people to invest in our 1st Amendment freedom to gather without reminders?

• How do I communicate more effectively to motivate current caring citizens and prospective caring citizens to modify their moral worldview when it is actually hindering trust building and shrinking our common wealth?

• How do I respond to my conservative neighbors who resist adding compassion and shared responsibility to their idea of public governance or their identity as a citizen?

• What steps can caring citizens take to foster more effective neighborhood teams that build effective partnerships across precinct lines to build effective public governance?

These are the questions the co-founders of the Empathy Surplus Project, working through Caring Citizens’ Chapters in precincts across America, seek to answer. Chuck Watts, a life long Democratic Party member, and Gary Evans, a life long Republican Party member, co-founded the Empathy Surplus Project.

The Empathy Surplus Project is for all caring citizens of any party who are committed to the fulfillment of the American Dream of a well-functioning democracy. In such a democracy, whose soul is empathy, if caring citizens are to be effective in protecting and empowering each other, it is important to embrace the latest insights of the brain.

The Empathy Surplus Project, to be successful, will depend on crowd-sourcing – lots of people involved in a variety of ways and focused on embracing the latest insights of the brain and their implication on conversations that matter in our own neighborhoods.

How You Can Participate As An Effective Partner With The Occupy Movement?

You can “Like” us on FaceBook.

You can “Follow” us on Twitter.

You can “Join” us on the Compassionate Action Network to make your city a Compassionate City.

You can form a book study group in your neighborhood and inwardly digest the political implications and use of the latest insights of the brain found in Thinking Points: Communicating America’s Values and Vision. By practicing, we mean posting on these networks AND re-posting on your own networks. Click on the book to download your copy today.

You can make an investment in the Empathy Surplus Project.

You can become a Photo Petition Partner of the Health Care Is A Human Right Collaboration. Photo petition partners either take photos or are in photos as well as tell their stories. In addition to a photo release form, you’ll need a:

• Camera. Lori’s photo was taken with a cell phone.
• You’ll need an 11×17 dry erase board and a RED dry erase marker.
• Tape this poster to the board and handout these bookmarks to participants.

You can explore the Four Responsibilities of caring citizens in pilot chartered chapters:

1. Inwardly digest the political implications and usage of the latest brain research; and use our core freedom values in daily conversations about government and its moral mission to protect and empower us. (personal responsibility)
2. Invest our time, talents, and treasures in our 1st Amendment freedom to gather weekly for conversations that matter and identify caring policy directions that expand our liberties. (personal and shared responsibility)
3. Invite others to join our freedom partnership and lobby our respective party representatives and public servants for our caring policy directions. (personal and shared responsibility)
4. Implement our moral mission to protect and empower each other by electing caring citizens from their respective parties to county, state, and national central committees. (personal and social responsibility)

What else can you do? The 1st Pilot Project of the Empathy Surplus Project

You could charter a Caring Citizens Chapter. Are you able to invest an hour/week to strengthen our 1st Amendment freedoms? The Empathy Surplus Project seeks to strengthen neighborhood democracy. Groups of 15 citizens of any party adhering to the vision and values listed in the Model Caring Citizens Chapter Constitution may charter a chapter with their own board, which includes a representative to serve as a board member to the Empathy Surplus Project. The first pilot phase ends when the 10th chapter is chartered and the Empathy Surplus Project has a full board of directors plus the founder. If you have 14 friends who want to explore this freedom partnership offering you may want to study Thinking Points together.

Currently there are two caring citizen groups exploring becoming a chapter: Dayton, OH; and Wilmington, OH.