Well, here we are in the dog
days of summer of an election year, and the political world seems to be in the
throws of desperate appeals to save the country from utter and total ruin if
the wrong people get elected. I’m
getting pretty tired of it all.
That is, those on the left are
screaming that the those on the right are out to steal the election, destroy
the society, dismantle the government, and round up all the non-white and weak
population and put them in concentration camps (well, maybe they are really saying those things, but those on the
left know what those on the right really mean).
And, those on the right are
screaming that those on the left are out to steal the election, destroy
society, cripple the free market, and round up all the business and productive
people and put them into government re-education camps (well, maybe they aren’t
really saying those things, but those
on the right know what those on the left really
mean).
But, you know, look at what
happened four years ago. Barak Obama ran
on Hope and Change. He was seen to be,
by his voters and by himself, a transformative historical figure. He was going to change the county and change
the world. What happened? The world changed, you bet, and he
helped. But it certainly hasn’t changed
the way he predicted he would make it change, has it? The world changes with or without our
presidents or congresses.
It is always so nice to
pretend to believe during the big elections that our politicians have the power
to rule the world. But, the country, and
the world, are so much more powerful than our politicians. I think that what happens, mostly, is that
those in power end up doing what they can’t avoid doing, which is reacting to
reality rather than being able to keep campaign promises that make sense
ideologically but don’t really make much sense in the real world.
For example, Candidate Obama
was going to dramatically change the foreign policy of the United States –
be nicer, more accommodating, lift negotiation and compromise back to the top
of the agenda, have the world love us once again. And I think he did a good job of changing the
tone of Washington, but President Obama did what he discovered he had to do -
he pretty much has maintained President G.W. Bush’s foreign policies in the wars of
Iraq and Afghanistan, kept Guantanamo in operation, is tightening the sanction
screws on the refuse-to-negotiate Iran, demonstrating U.S. power in the China
seas, etc. Much the same as Bush had
done, or probably would have done.
Domestically, despite some of
the most contentious and libelous battles I have ever seen in Congress, the
debt ceiling actually was raised, the Keynesian stimulus package was actually
passed, a nationalized health care package actually squeaked through congress
and the president, the financial system was saved from collapse, a world wide depression
was averted even though we are still in a pretty deep recession still,
etc. The world goes on despite the howls
of the ideologues on both sides about how it is all coming to an end any minute
now.
The pundits are aflame, the
impassioned bases on the left and right are livid with fear and righteousness,
the engaged middle is trying to calm the issues just a bit, the disengaged
middle are trying their best to ignore the partisan hysterics, and in the end,
we will elect a new government.
And it will be a fine
government after all, and the country will not be ruined.
Let’s just not get too excited
by the process, and realize that the process is very carefully designed to get
us really, really afraid that it is all going to go to hell if we don’t vote
for the right candidates.
They are just trying to get
your money, your time, and your vote.
We should each pick a side, and be engaged, and care, and vote; let’s just pull away from the demonization of each other a
bit, if we can. We’re all in this
together, and the day after the election we’re all going to be here still. We need to live together, and it is so much better
when we are not at each other’s throats.