Why are there no projects that Republicans and Democrats can work on together in Congress?
Most of the people I know have a very diverse range of views, and the best part of that is watching them converse on the issues of the day. For one particular group of friends I spend some time with, despite a full range of views across the political spectrum, all of the discussions that transpire on Obama, on congress, on healthcare, and economics, generally result in much more agreement than disagreement. People's natural proclivity in a normal conversation is to look for common ground rather than disagreement. Unfortunately, partisan politics does not serve our national conversation in quite the same way.
But, why can't politicians try to agree on something, even if it was something small? The reality is for the past 10 years congress has had historically high disapproval ratings. Those ratings have reflected equally on Republicans and Democrats throughout their time in control.
Why don't the political parties get together and try and find 5 issues where there is broad consensus, and present them to the American people as an effort to demonstrate congress can work for all the people in spite of our intense political divisions?
It might remind politicians what really matters: legislation that results in real positive change for the electorate. That's what's remembered. That's what makes a great statesman.
But, ultimately it starts with us. It's too easy for us to gravitate towards viewpoints that reflect our own. It's too easy for us to constantly search for ways to substantiate our own positions. We, for the most part, enable this intense partisanship because we're less invested in the debate, and more invested in proving that we're right all the time.
So tomorrow, or the next day, or next week, or next month, listen to a talk radio show you don't agree with for an hour, or read a few blogs from the other side. Try and focus on what you can agree with and not what you dislike. Try and find the basis for respecting those you oppose.
That's the kind of thing our politicians need to do. But, it's also the kind of thing we need to do more as voters to expand our own minds and create a constituency of moderation that appeals to politicians.
Lastly, I always dreamt of a TV debate show, a bit like the old show Crossfire or Hannity & Colmes, where every week day the issues are debated in four or five segments. But, the twist would be that a prominent conservative would have to argue the liberal side. And, a prominent liberal would have to argue the conservative side. At the end of the show a studio audience of independents could vote on who won, and an amount of money could be donated to a charity of that person's choosing as a prize. This could incentivize contestants to make a real effort to represent the other side, and hopefully, encourage the viewing audience at home to participate in considering different points of view.
These are the kinds of strides we should be making, in my humble opinion, to transform the national conversation into one where in Congress, like most Americans, politicians look for common ground rather than disagreement.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
We're In This Together
I haven't written a political blog in quite some time. I don't think anyone frequents this place anymore, as its been many years since I updated the site on a regular basis.
I've been very political since my teenage years. I studied government and politics at college in the UK. I fell in love with US politics, and not long thereafter fell in love with an American gal, and moved to live in this great country that has given me so much pride and opportunity.
I love this country so much. I love it's sprawling landscapes, its disparate breadth of culture, its commitment to liberty, and personal responsibility, its optimism, and its enterprise. I love its constitution. I love its legal system and institutions. I love what it actually means to be an American. The spirit of all those immigrants that came here, centuries ago, fleeing persecution and oppressive circumstances, in pursuit of prosperity and freedom... that spirit endures and permeates the present. It makes the United States stronger today just as it did then.
Earlier this year I received my permanent residency. As I've heard many other ex-pats say before me, I feel as much an American now, as I do an Englishman.
I've never felt less political, and less interested in the successes of the respective parties. I'm a liberal. I'm left of center. I'm pretty conservative on economic policy. I'm pretty liberal on social policies. But, I don't see what's going on in the country through the prism of re-election for Obama or defeat of Republicans as I have done in the past.
We're in a global economic crisis. What's going on is so much larger than all the petty political narratives espoused by both the left and right.
There is a vacuum at the heart of our politics, and national discussion. There is just raw anger, on either side. On the right people feel the nation's fundamental values and identity have been torn asunder by Obama. They feel patronized. They feel he doesn't want to be their President. On the left people feel the richest 1% are squeezing the middle and working class further and further, while not being held accountable for the mess they got us into in the first place. All this anger is expressed by Tea Party protestors and Wall Street protestors alike, and its exploited by political pundits, without any positive proposals for meeting these great challenges and building a more prosperous future for everyone.
We are adrift. Our respective political ideologies are so bankrupt of practical solutions, and sound policy objectives. It all gets lost beneath the rabble.
The economic consensus that emerged from the 1980's, and the economic growth inspired by Reaganomics transformed the western world. It transformed it in ways most of us are too young to fully grasp. In some ways it divided us. In some ways it damaged us. But, it provided us with an extraordinary standard of living, and a vibrant marketplace full of booming technological advancements and unshackled innovation and creativity.
We live in a world where as individuals we have a greater say over our own identity, and our place in the world, more so than any generation before us.
We live in a world where we are inextricably connected to people in many different countries. We live in a world where divisive social constructs like institutional racism, misogyny, and oppressive organized thinking diminish the worth and trajectory of individuals less. We live in a world where everything from our ring tones, to our social networking pages, to our clothes, to our cars are an opportunity for us to say something about ourselves. Many consider modernity a spiritual bankrupt wasteland. I see the spirituality and humanity of people invested so significantly in their lives. I don't think true love has ever meant more. It may transcend the conventions of the past, but many of us have heard the abusive stories of our grandfathers and great grandfathers and what family units in the 1950's and 60's often amounted to in reality compared to the idyllic pretense.
We are more emotionally literate, expressive, unique, and capable. We have greater access to information than ever before.
Before the 1980's the way in which we discussed economic systems was very different to today. The political consensus involved a mixed economy, with much higher levels of taxation, and more extensive regulations. It involved a world where the individual mattered less.
In our time, Republicans and Democrats alike have subscribed to an economic consensus, and save for a fortuitous passage in the 1990's (to the credit of both parties) we have never come to grips with two things. Excessive government debt, and a recognition that too little taxation, and too little regulation allows for the engine of free market economic growth to derail, and turn a boom into a bust.
While too much taxation and too much regulation stagnates, not only our economy, but the very vibrancy of our potential as individuals, too little allows for economic anarchy and a financial sector that resembles a lawless and dangerous wild west.
Our problem now is sovereign debt all over the world. A significant amount of that sovereign debt has nothing to do with the excesses of wall street, financial markets, or deregulation. It's about corrupt governments and social programs, well intentioned, that cannot be paid for.
So we can course correct. So we can confront the challenges in Greece, Ireland, and many other European countries that are destabilizing the economy. So we can put rules in place to prevent the markets making the same mistakes again and governments making the same mistakes again.
So we can cut government spending in the United States without suggesting its a painless process. Cutting government spending in large measure in the short term contracts economic growth. That is the reality.
So we can cut defense spending. So we can reform social security. So we can set a much more aggressive target for spending cuts over a period of 6-10 years.
And, so we can marginally raise income taxes on people who earn over a million dollars to increase government revenues, while incorporating the right tax incentives and credits to ensure it doesn't discourage small businesses from hiring.
We cannot compete with the labor costs in developing countries. We cannot legislate protectionism to prevent companies shipping jobs overseas.
We have to innovate. We have to create new thriving products and services. We have to address our trade deficit.
We have to recognize that life is extremely hard right now for families all over the country. We have to recognize that the economic crisis is a human tragedy, first and foremost.
We have to recognize that there is nothing wrong with being successful. There is nothing wrong with being a millionaire or a billionaire. An individuals pursuit of success for his or herself is the nature of our economic system.
The alternative is a prohibitive marketplace suffocated by a state that eventually can't afford the social justice it tries to implement anyway. Billionaires and millionaires are amongst those who will be relied upon by us all to turn this economy around, like it or not. We need them to invest. We need them to take chances.
Rather than castigate the rich, or brand angry protestors as socialists, why not take a different approach?
Obama's greatest failing, in my opinion, has been the manner in which he's patronized the tea party, and antagonized the business community.
By comparison, the right is so convinced their political opponents are dedicated to destroying America that their punditry spends all of their time manufacturing cynical conspiracies with a mild strain of McCarthyism.
Why not try and understand each other within a framework. A mutual understanding and a basic consensus is attainable.
Why not consider the other side? Why not step into their shoes? Why not respect those that we disagree with while being strong in our own positions? Why not stop feeling threatened by all of these tangential political narratives? Why not really try to confront reality and its challenges as THE priority?
It's the economy stupid.
Let's start the journey of making it better.
And, the journey alone, if we can set a course of improvement, can be a path that lifts us up.
Why wouldn't we? We're in this together - left, right, rich, poor, Republican and Liberal alike.
If we can address the sovereign debt crisis, pass stronger regulations, and do so in a comprehensive fashion, fundamentally acknowledging both sides, this nation can thrive.
Developing nations develop. Their living standards improve. Their living wage gets larger. Their people gain greater freedoms and demand more rights. Developing nations eventually develop and the playing field will level.
In the interim America can address its issues, learn from its mistakes, as the world addresses its issues, and with greater unity, and a commitment to solutions and not partisanship... we can... once again... grow.
I've been very political since my teenage years. I studied government and politics at college in the UK. I fell in love with US politics, and not long thereafter fell in love with an American gal, and moved to live in this great country that has given me so much pride and opportunity.
I love this country so much. I love it's sprawling landscapes, its disparate breadth of culture, its commitment to liberty, and personal responsibility, its optimism, and its enterprise. I love its constitution. I love its legal system and institutions. I love what it actually means to be an American. The spirit of all those immigrants that came here, centuries ago, fleeing persecution and oppressive circumstances, in pursuit of prosperity and freedom... that spirit endures and permeates the present. It makes the United States stronger today just as it did then.
Earlier this year I received my permanent residency. As I've heard many other ex-pats say before me, I feel as much an American now, as I do an Englishman.
I've never felt less political, and less interested in the successes of the respective parties. I'm a liberal. I'm left of center. I'm pretty conservative on economic policy. I'm pretty liberal on social policies. But, I don't see what's going on in the country through the prism of re-election for Obama or defeat of Republicans as I have done in the past.
We're in a global economic crisis. What's going on is so much larger than all the petty political narratives espoused by both the left and right.
There is a vacuum at the heart of our politics, and national discussion. There is just raw anger, on either side. On the right people feel the nation's fundamental values and identity have been torn asunder by Obama. They feel patronized. They feel he doesn't want to be their President. On the left people feel the richest 1% are squeezing the middle and working class further and further, while not being held accountable for the mess they got us into in the first place. All this anger is expressed by Tea Party protestors and Wall Street protestors alike, and its exploited by political pundits, without any positive proposals for meeting these great challenges and building a more prosperous future for everyone.
We are adrift. Our respective political ideologies are so bankrupt of practical solutions, and sound policy objectives. It all gets lost beneath the rabble.
The economic consensus that emerged from the 1980's, and the economic growth inspired by Reaganomics transformed the western world. It transformed it in ways most of us are too young to fully grasp. In some ways it divided us. In some ways it damaged us. But, it provided us with an extraordinary standard of living, and a vibrant marketplace full of booming technological advancements and unshackled innovation and creativity.
We live in a world where as individuals we have a greater say over our own identity, and our place in the world, more so than any generation before us.
We live in a world where we are inextricably connected to people in many different countries. We live in a world where divisive social constructs like institutional racism, misogyny, and oppressive organized thinking diminish the worth and trajectory of individuals less. We live in a world where everything from our ring tones, to our social networking pages, to our clothes, to our cars are an opportunity for us to say something about ourselves. Many consider modernity a spiritual bankrupt wasteland. I see the spirituality and humanity of people invested so significantly in their lives. I don't think true love has ever meant more. It may transcend the conventions of the past, but many of us have heard the abusive stories of our grandfathers and great grandfathers and what family units in the 1950's and 60's often amounted to in reality compared to the idyllic pretense.
We are more emotionally literate, expressive, unique, and capable. We have greater access to information than ever before.
Before the 1980's the way in which we discussed economic systems was very different to today. The political consensus involved a mixed economy, with much higher levels of taxation, and more extensive regulations. It involved a world where the individual mattered less.
In our time, Republicans and Democrats alike have subscribed to an economic consensus, and save for a fortuitous passage in the 1990's (to the credit of both parties) we have never come to grips with two things. Excessive government debt, and a recognition that too little taxation, and too little regulation allows for the engine of free market economic growth to derail, and turn a boom into a bust.
While too much taxation and too much regulation stagnates, not only our economy, but the very vibrancy of our potential as individuals, too little allows for economic anarchy and a financial sector that resembles a lawless and dangerous wild west.
Our problem now is sovereign debt all over the world. A significant amount of that sovereign debt has nothing to do with the excesses of wall street, financial markets, or deregulation. It's about corrupt governments and social programs, well intentioned, that cannot be paid for.
So we can course correct. So we can confront the challenges in Greece, Ireland, and many other European countries that are destabilizing the economy. So we can put rules in place to prevent the markets making the same mistakes again and governments making the same mistakes again.
So we can cut government spending in the United States without suggesting its a painless process. Cutting government spending in large measure in the short term contracts economic growth. That is the reality.
So we can cut defense spending. So we can reform social security. So we can set a much more aggressive target for spending cuts over a period of 6-10 years.
And, so we can marginally raise income taxes on people who earn over a million dollars to increase government revenues, while incorporating the right tax incentives and credits to ensure it doesn't discourage small businesses from hiring.
We cannot compete with the labor costs in developing countries. We cannot legislate protectionism to prevent companies shipping jobs overseas.
We have to innovate. We have to create new thriving products and services. We have to address our trade deficit.
We have to recognize that life is extremely hard right now for families all over the country. We have to recognize that the economic crisis is a human tragedy, first and foremost.
We have to recognize that there is nothing wrong with being successful. There is nothing wrong with being a millionaire or a billionaire. An individuals pursuit of success for his or herself is the nature of our economic system.
The alternative is a prohibitive marketplace suffocated by a state that eventually can't afford the social justice it tries to implement anyway. Billionaires and millionaires are amongst those who will be relied upon by us all to turn this economy around, like it or not. We need them to invest. We need them to take chances.
Rather than castigate the rich, or brand angry protestors as socialists, why not take a different approach?
Obama's greatest failing, in my opinion, has been the manner in which he's patronized the tea party, and antagonized the business community.
By comparison, the right is so convinced their political opponents are dedicated to destroying America that their punditry spends all of their time manufacturing cynical conspiracies with a mild strain of McCarthyism.
Why not try and understand each other within a framework. A mutual understanding and a basic consensus is attainable.
Why not consider the other side? Why not step into their shoes? Why not respect those that we disagree with while being strong in our own positions? Why not stop feeling threatened by all of these tangential political narratives? Why not really try to confront reality and its challenges as THE priority?
It's the economy stupid.
Let's start the journey of making it better.
And, the journey alone, if we can set a course of improvement, can be a path that lifts us up.
Why wouldn't we? We're in this together - left, right, rich, poor, Republican and Liberal alike.
If we can address the sovereign debt crisis, pass stronger regulations, and do so in a comprehensive fashion, fundamentally acknowledging both sides, this nation can thrive.
Developing nations develop. Their living standards improve. Their living wage gets larger. Their people gain greater freedoms and demand more rights. Developing nations eventually develop and the playing field will level.
In the interim America can address its issues, learn from its mistakes, as the world addresses its issues, and with greater unity, and a commitment to solutions and not partisanship... we can... once again... grow.
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