Monday, November 7, 2016

The Different Faces of Politics

                       The Different Faces of Politics

                     Published in Marietta Daily Journal Nov. 6, 2016 

            As the saying goes, “Politics is downstream from culture.”  Indeed it is.  Our politics is us.  Those in office are those we placed in office.  In a democratic society, political leaders are definitely a reflection of the people.
            Politics is also two-faced.  One face is that of winks and ulterior motives.  The other face is that of selfless, sincere people who enter politics to make things better.
            Most dictionaries define politics as the science of government, but we know better.  Politics has never been a science, though it could be called an art.  True science deals with or works from immutable laws.  Few if any things in government are immutable or “nailed down.”  Governmental policy can change in a whiff.  Political “convictions” can change even faster.
            Rather than viewing politics as having to do with governing, we best define it, honestly, as the practice of seeking and holding on to public office.
            For a large number of citizens, the very word “politics” conjures negative thoughts.  More than ever, Americans are viewing politics as dirty.  Dirt is dirty too, but it produces, directly or indirectly, every bite of food that we put into our mouths.  Perhaps this comparison is not apt, however.  Dirt can be cultivated, fertilized, and prepared for producing good food, and is seldom resistant to the preparation.  The heart of the politician is not always so receptive to such preparation mixture.
            Nobody should think that dirty politics is of recent vintage.  Read of the presidential campaigns – almost any of them – that stretch back to Adams and Jefferson.  Re-read what was said about Andrew Jackson’s wife Rachel.  And don’t forget Richard Nixon’s VP and attack dog, Spiro Agnew, who called Nixon’s media critics “nattering nabobs of negativism.”  To me, Agnew’s alliterative words were not only amusing, but true.
            One ancient writing reads, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth.”  That means don’t talk ugly.  Surely it also refers to lying.  Politics has always been a land in which corrupt communication abounds, whether lies, insinuation, or slander.  Why? Because some office seekers and office holders are willing to employ it to win or keep office.  They enjoy orbiting around the powerful so much that corrupt communication is no big deal. 
            Politics is also the land of weasel words.  Consider the concoction, “reproductive freedom.”  It actually means abortion.  It is the most ironic and deceptive weasel word of all.  It references reproduction when its objective is the halting of reproduction.  “Reproductive freedom” actually means the freedom and legality to get rid of a totally helpless, unborn baby.
            There are others.  “Undocumented worker” happens to be a technically accurate expression, but it is meant to tone down the more precise term, “illegal immigrant.”  In that sense, it is deceptive.  Everybody knows that “revenue enhancements” are taxes and that “to evolve” means to change one’s mind or position purely to get votes.
            But consider the other face of politics, that of men and women in politics in whom there is no guile.  They are far too few.   One of their prototypes is William Wilberforce, the passionate British evangelical and member of Parliament who effectively ended slavery in the British Empire.
            Wilberforce did so with the support of several fellow Parliament members who openly lived immoral lives.  Because of a deep sense of justice, Wilberforce was willing to lay aside his disdain for the vile lives of his colleagues in Parliament and work with them in order to alleviate the horrible suffering of African slaves.  It is doubtful that the British Empire would have ended slavery had not Wilberforce worked with people whose behavior he detested.  Strange bedfellows, we call it.
            Politics is one thing.  Statesmanship and effective statecraft are another.  For those who find themselves in a conundrum regarding for whom to vote for President, Wilberforce’s own conundrum is instructive.  He studied his realistic options, chose sides, and took action.  Britain and the world were made better because of it.
             Regarding this week’s election, if voters consider Donald Trump vile, they should also consider the words, views, and behavior of Hillary Clinton.  Perhaps our guiding question should be how much government do we want.
            Biographer Eric Metaxas in the Wall Street Journal recently wrote, “We already live in a country where judges force bakers, florists, and photographers to violate their consciences and faith, and Mr. Clinton has zealously ratified this.”
            The time is close.  As Metaxas added, “Not to vote is to vote.”

Roger Hines

11/3/16

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