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On Not Going To Far
It's no secret that I'm not fond of Republicans, or of conservative ideology. I've not been silent about how dangerous I think Bush and his cronies are. What is worth re-examining, however, is what we do in the name of defeating them.
We say that we should be a nation of laws and not men. But in our recent political disputes we have been eager to make elections not about what someone does but about what they are. Republicans have been successful in part because they have persuaded some people that Democrats are simply unfit for public office - that they cannot be trusted, that they are unacceptable. And they have done so by saying that we are liars, cowards, weaklings, traitors, whatever. They have run campaigns based on personalities rather than ideas.
It is tempting - almost irresistable, in fact, to reply in kind. But I am coming to wonder whether this approach is worth it, or whether it just makes things worse. Not only does it ultimately just feed public cynicism about politics, but it also makes us the into the very things we are fighting against.
George Bush is not a bad President because he is a Texan, or a religious zealot, or an idiot, or a spoiled rich boy - although he is all of those things. He is a bad President because the policies he has pursued are terrible for the country. He has demonstrated administrative incompetence, foreign policy blunders, disastrous economic management, and no regard for the integrity of the democratic process. These are all judgments on what he and his allies have done. Not who they are.
So I am beginning to think that although we should argue that our opponents should be driven out of office with great passion and even some righteous anger, we should avoid name-calling and personal attacks. We should not say "my opponent is an ass" but rather "my opponent does asinine things."
It's a fine line, I know. But I am reminded of what Robert Kennedy said when he announced his candidacy in 1968: "I do not seek the Presidency to oppose any man, but to propose new policies." Words worth remembering.
4 Comments:
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Hoo-rah!
By
One thing I learned a little too late in life is that in order to get people to listen, you do not resort to name calling, but point out what they do that you do not agree with. I think our society (over the last 20 years) has become one of spoiled children who never learned to get past the name calling stage.
I believe it is people who think like you who are going to have to pull us USA-ians out of the hole.
Cheers!
Penguin, at 10:40 AM
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I must politely disagree here. As much as I would like a political discourse shaped by substance, the political reality is that the Republicans have mastered the art of character assassination. Even though the Republicans act like spoiled children, they portray the Democrats as spoiled, elitest children who are not fit for public office, while they portray themselves as mature adults who represent the common man, and defend the common man against terrorism and liberal values. They have created an environment in which people don't listen to Democrats because of the "spoiled brat" image that has been pinned on us. The best way to fight back is to switch the image: call the Republicans spoiled children while portraying ourselves as mature adults. Until we do that, no amount of substance will get us far because we will only preach to the converted, and everyone else simply tunes us out. In other words, we need the Democratic version of Karl Rove and Lee Atwater.
By Marriah, at 11:30 AM
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You know, I'm not sure that politics is any worse than the cutthroat environment of big business, but the political world does not seem to feel as constrained to try to hide most of its ugliness with at least the pretence of higher ethical standards. That's why we are so much more inclined to call politics "dirty".
By
I think it would be very difficult to avoid ending up in darker places while being immersed in that profession. What's different about you, Publius, is that you don't want that to happen. There are many who simply just wouldn't care. There are many, in fact, who actually accept those dark places as a given - that is where they are expecting to operate.
If it were not for the small glimmer of idealism in the political universe, which no one (thank God) has been able to completely extinguish, politics would probably be a smelly mire of writhing black souls. Unfortunately, the path from idealism to realism is filled with disillusionment. It's a good thing that there seems to be a never ending supply of idealists.
Still, you are very, very lucky to have Brazen keeping you on the straight and narrow. Rebecca, at 12:38 PM
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That shouldn't stop you from name-calling in private, though. I could think of a few for Sen. Burns of Montana, who the NY Times quoted as claiming the US is facing "a 'faceless enemy' of terrorists who 'drive cabs in the daytime and kill at night.'"
By
Sorry to potentially provoke, but I just can't get over the paranoia. kermitthefrog, at 9:32 PM
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