The Third Way (synonymous to the New Center) is beyond the politics of extremes, social exclusion, isolation and despair. Anthony Giddens, the architect and political philosopher behind 3W, identified six fundamentals in 1998: an acceptance that Left and Right no longer apply to all politics; that constraints are needed on government, the economy and communities of civil society; the creation of a new social contract in which there are responsibilities as well as rights; extensive social investment in education, communications and infrastructure; the fostering of a diversified society based on egalitarian principles; participation in global change. Its prominent practitioners are Tony Blair of Great Britain, Bill Clinton of the United States and Gerhard Schroeder of Germany. Today 3W is all over, from Switzerland to Palestine, from Brazil to Japan, 3W is becoming the global debate of the Center.
The Third Way philosophy seeks to adapt enduring progressive values to the new challenges of the Information Age. It rests on three cornerstones: the idea that government should promote equal opportunity for all while granting special privilege for none; an ethic of mutual responsibility that equally rejects the politics of entitlement and the politics of social abandonment; and a new approach to governing that empowers citizens to act for themselves.
It would have been a different play for 2007 had a credible alternative based on Choice of Voters was put together by leaders who had the country in mind. But alas, most of them are preoccupied with their own self interests that they cannot see why voters are important.
