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07/15/2005: "An NPR mind in a Fox news world"
(a bumper sticker I saw)
I did get a chuckle out of this bumper sticker, but actually, I am more of a Democracy Now mind in a Wall Street Journal world, but that is probably quibbling.
I have been so full of frustration lately, what with the State shutdown, the bombings in London, the never ending circus in Washington, The Supreme Court, the Congress, and of course the White House, not to mention the heat here in Minneapolis, that I have had a strange form of writer’s block. Too much to say, and not enough time to gather my thoughts. I am going to unload a bit here.
STATE SHUTDOWN
The legislators have one major responsibility, to pass a budget every other year. Anything else they do is gravy (or perhaps something worse). This is made difficult by the diversity of the state and the people that are elected. We have everyone from racist homophobic NRA member dittorheads, to Lesbian Radicals from the inner city. I used to say that we lock these people in a room for five months or so, and they have to listen to each other and compromise enough to pass a budget. Well this year they didn’t (or couldn’t depending upon your point of view) do it.
We have a right to be angry about it they didn’t do their jobs and no amount of finger pointing should placate us. What should we, as citizens do? What we have done is elect people who are as extreme as possible towards whatever position we have.
If the other side isn’t going to compromise then I want my representative to be just as firm on the other side. I continue to take this position with the people that I support. In the final analysis, however we do not live in a world (or a state) peopled with people who agree with us. Politics is the word we give to what happens when people who don’t agree with each other are forced to make decisions together. It applies to your cub scout troupe, your church organization, or the state legislature. If you want to be effective in this world, you need to listen to other people, respect their right to have their views, and work to find common ground.
So why couldn’t this happen in Minnesota this year? Each side wants to blame the other, but it looks to me like there is plenty of blame to go around. I think the citizens of Minnesota get what they vote for. Very few calls to legislators asked them to compromise. They were encouraged to hang in there, stand their ground, whether the issues were to save MNCare, stop abortions, raise taxes, not raise taxes, or whatever. I admit, I am part of the problem. I was cheering Linda Berglin as she let the fight to keep MNCare. But it still is clear to me that the only way to govern a state with a lot of different viewpoints is to be less strident and more listening. I don’t know if I could do it, and right now I am not supporting candidates who will either.
LONDON
The most instructive thing for me is the contrast between the way that the people of London have reacted to the way that Americans reacted after 911. I didn’t see lapel buttons, flags, of the Union Jack appearing everywhere. They didn’t go off and bomb whatever country they were most mad at today. They didn’t bring the entire economy, including television and transportation to a halt, and they didn’t even gather up 600 people who were the same color as the suspected perpetrators, and keep them in jail for over 3 years without charges, hearings or even releasing their names.
No, in spite of Tony Blair’s whining they reopened the tube (their subway) the next day, they mourned the dead, and the police investigated with the intention of arresting and trying (remember due process – we used to have it in the United States) them for their crimes.
America acted like angry children, England acted like mature adults. Perhaps it is because they have been an empire for longer?
WASHINGTON
Well now the democrats are yelling and screaming to fire Karl Rove. The Republicans are saying, lets not get partisan here, it ‘s a criminal investigation, and anyway he didn’t say her name. – Just who she was married to. Perhaps he practices polygamy so he believes this did not identify the person. I don’t know.
I know that revenge is sweet, turnaround is fair play, and we are still angry about what the republicans did to Clinton, to the Wellstone memorial, etc.etc. but sometime, someone must take the high road.
Here is a radical suggestion, let us not engage in the politics of personal destruction. Let’s work on issues, on making things better, but let’s not make gains by attacking and destroying our opponents. We are going to be involved in at least one Supreme Court appointment. I do not care what kind of movies or magazines the new appointee watches, and I am not sure if I even care if they paid their taxes on their nanny 20 years ago.
TERRORISM
Here is another radical idea. Instead of building an empire, sacrificing personal liberty to reduce the likelihood of being blown up, reinstituting the draft, and lying to the world all the time, let’s do something else. Let’s try not to be at war with the rest of the world. I am proposing peace initiatives.
We are at war, essentially to maintain our right to be rich, well lets bring prosperity to the rest of the world, even if it costs us some of our life style here. It will cost us our life style to be at war also, Trillions of dollars and almost 2,000 soldiers dead (and over 10,000 Iraqis) so far.
Lets start by eliminated hunger, then lets help bring prosperity to the rest of the world. Support workers right to organize, so that wages go up. Solve the problem that is keeping HIV drugs from most of the world’s population. Meet with our enemies, sue for peace.
I know, as John Lennon said, I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
Good talking to you.