Politics these days
Wednesday September 3, 2008
Categories: Politics (general)
A question for all readers, whatever one's political views: Why would any mother or father want their children to go into politics these days? Honestly, could anything be worth putting up with all of this?...
Filed Under: casting stones, Politics
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About Crunchy Con
Rod Dreher is an editorial columnist for the Dallas Morning News, and author of "Crunchy Cons" (Crown Forum), a nonfiction book about conservatives, most of them religious, whose faith and political convictions sometimes put them at odds with mainstream conservatives. The views expressed in this blog are his own.
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In other words, is it responsible for Obama, as the father of two young daughters, to seek public office at this time in his young life?
Is that the question?
Serious answer: "No, nothing is worth it. No, I wouldn't"
The American political culture has grown too fractious, too intensely scrutinizing for any human being to survive becoming anything but a complete caricature. My own life would be fodder for cruel SNL skits for years. I can only imagine.
My daughter, age 6, asked me the other day about the election. I did my best to (impartially!) explain how the process worked, and then I proudly showed her a picture of Palin. She told me she wanted to be president some day. For half a moment, my heart fluttered with dread. Then I acted supportive. But inside I was just praying for her to find something else to interest her in life besides politics.
Why would any mother or father want their children to go into politics these days?
No reason I can think of. No reasonable person would go into politics or want his kids to. Which is probably why the choices get worse every cycle.
These days? I seem to remember reading about a couple of our Founding Fathers having an actual duel at the Heights of Weehawken two-hundred odd years ago.
I don't think it's any worse now than it ever has been, but no...I wouldn't want my children going into politics. Hopefully, they can find something more useful to do.
I have one child who appears to have the psyche of Theodore Roosevelt: an ebullient optimist, deeply competitive, and someone who laughs off criticism.
I would love it if she went into politics. And if I agreed with her policies, I might even vote for her.
Why would any mother or father want their children to go into politics these days?
To perpetuate the family political dynasty and/or to be in a position to influence the legislation that might affect the family fortune:
Bush
Gore
Kennedy
Rockefeller
Daley
Good god, if it weren't for the fact that i know of no better alternative, I'd say that it's not even worth sitting through as a citizen. If we could guaruntee a truly benevolent monarch I'd almost be for it.
Almost.
Rod, why oh why are you not liveblogging tonight's convention speeches! It's even Huckabee! Wow, talk about red meat.
And to the topic posted: because it's better than any of the alternative forms of government. Somebody's gotta do it.
Please don't tell my mother I'm in politics.
She thinks I'm a piano player in a bordello.
Go Huck!!! This is awesome!
"Honestly, could anything be worth putting up with all of this?"
Yes: Government of the people, by the people, for the people.
And when it fails to meet those criteria, guess who's to blame: the people.
It's Y(OUR) fault either way, so step up, citizens, or 'stifle!', as A. Buncker would say.
To get one's ego and other things stroked and (in the vernacular) "get paid."
To ask *not* what you can do for your country, but what your country can do for *you.*
To "stick it" to [insert people you don't like] because they "really" are [insert derogatory slur].
Nothing is worth the abuse the Palin's are being subject to. Nothing.
I have to assume that the few moments of their life where they are subject to what we subject them to are worth it for the bulk of the time they spend actually doing the work of governing (such as it is).
Several have asked if this was the best the parties could get.
I'll say yes, with qualifications... Yes, these are the best the parties could get. They are the ones that could get through the process and win.
And then I'll say no, with qualifications...
No, these are nowhere near the best people for this job. The best people won't go anywhere near politics, because they are not masochists. There are great men and women of character, with integrity, purpose, drive, and wisdom.
That last one explains why they have no significant interest in the job.
Palin's the closest thing to a real, qualified individual, who's not just some political gameplayer on either ticket. She's governed, not played the political party game. She doesn't like entrenched players in the game, either. Good for her.
Look at all the people who are ballistic because she fired lots of people she could when elected to office. You can't imagine how many I'd fire if I were president. Man, if I were president, and the presumptive leader the party, heads would roll such that the whole of DC would be turned on its head.
That's how far out of whack things are. Experience in DC? That earns you the "get packed and LEAVE NOW" letter in my book. We've had generations of "experienced" politicians and they just keep getting worse. 600 random names out of the Boise phone book would be infinitely wiser, better, than almost all of the current officeholders, and even those to be... In the swamp on the Potomac.
I'm sorry so many of you like the game and the players in it. I do not. They are the least deserving of the job, in my not so humble opinion.
The question isn't why would it be worth it? It's why would you want to damage your soul in the way that power requires.
Just as the brother of five siblings I would not want a relative going into state or national politics. I think you can be on a town council and live okay, but even then there's a fair amount of back-stabbing.
It isn't just what's happened to Palin that makes me say this though. It's what happened to Obama, Romney (who I don't even like), Bush (either one), Kerry, Gore, Admiral Stockdale, Quayle, and several others. Politics has always been a dirty-game, but with the rise of blogs I think it might be getting a bit worse. We're sort of entering the new age for muckraking and yellow journalism. (A defense of it would be that in the early 20th c. those two things did expose real corruption and problems, but so far the nonsense element of "new yellow journalism" has largely outweighed any positives for me)
In this day and age, everything said and done is either recorded or witnessed and reported. Which means every mistake is captured for posterity by the muckrakers that pass for journalists, and then flung about in public to entertain the masses. And the masses lap it up.
Years ago, I have no doubt, leaders like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln said things and did things that they later regretted, but they had no worry of seeing every single misstep and mistake blown out of proportion and having their lives turned in to a circus.
The people best qualified to lead have the wisdom to stay away from the mess. If any of my children were ever to desire to run for office higher than town council (our backwater's population is about 15,000), I think we'd have a long talk.
I've long thought that anyone who actually wanted to go through the process we currently have to be President, is automatically suspect. There is no way I would want to go through that wringer. Nor would I want any of my children to go through that.
However, I've recently come to believe that there is a reason; love of city, county, state and country. If you believe government is not being run as well as it should, and that you can do things to make it better; you should run.
Many people seem to get into politics because they want to BE a City Council Member, a County Commissioner, a Senator, a Governor or President. Other people get into politics because they want to accomplish something or to change something for the better - or their view of what's better. I want to support those who are trying to make things better - my view of what's better.
So, my shorter answer is that a reason to go into politics in this country is the love of freedom, liberty and the principles this country was founded on.
Woeful times in history are created by a leadership of idiots from both ends of the spectrum too enamored of the sounds of their voices to hear, let alone listen to, the voices of moderation and sanity standing in between.
It's easy to be a patriot when the issues are clear and sides easy to take. Governing is about serving the people. The great patriots of my experience balance issues with service.
Any child of mine, with eyes wide open, who truly wants to be a public servant, will have me on their campaign in the blink of an eye, unpaid leave from work and the whole nine yards, doing anything they ask of me.
What makes it "not worth it" in the eyes of many -- and please trust me, I know first hand how they feel -- will change only when we establish a generation of patriotic public servants.
Mr. Dreher writes:
"Why would any mother or father want their children to go into politics these days? Honestly, could anything be worth putting up with all of this?"
No good mother or father should want such a disgrace. I would consider a desire by any child of mine to go into politics as evidence of collapsed character, on a par with a desire to be a mercenary athlete or "performing artist".
I would also consider it evidence of failed parenting on my part.
Your servant,
Lord Karth
I agree with Thomas R. "I think you can be on a town council and live okay, but even then there's a fair amount of back-stabbing. "
You want back-stabbing? Serve on a church committee.
When my daughter started her first post-college full time job (a non-profit educational org), she took to heart my perspective-building advice: the faces may change, the list of important issues may differ, but there will always be [office] politics. People will do mean-spirited things. The trick is in figuring out if the person is making an honest mistake or is also a mean-spirited person. The former can usually be counted on to rectify their mistakes; the latter present you with a choice: put up and shut up, or find another job.
Any politician who can own up to and rectify mistakes gets my immediate admiration (a step above respect) and has made a huge step in earning (or validating) my vote.
I apologize for leaving my metaphor incomplete.
Any politician who can own up to and rectify mistakes gets my immediate admiration (a step above respect) and has made a huge step in earning (or validating) my vote.
If the politician really is mean-spirited, put up and shut up, or work to defeat him or her in the next election.
Yes: Government of the people, by the people, for the people.
And when it fails to meet those criteria, guess who's to blame: the people.
It's Y(OUR) fault either way, so step up, citizens, or 'stifle!', as A. Buncker would say.
Or as H.L. Mencken is supposed to have said, "Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want and deserve to get it, good and hard."
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