A New Low for Divisive Poison Politics

I'm not sure how many of you watched the Presidents speech to Congress last night but if you did you saw a public demonstration of how divisive U.S. politics have become. Of course I am referring to the outburst by Republican Congressman Joe Wilson of South Carolina's 2d district. When I was a younger man, members of Congress discussed their differences over a drink, public debates centered on fundamental differences in beliefs about the role of government. Opponents agreed to disagree and worked hard to convince voters that their philosophy was the best hope for the stability of the country. We were all proud of our President, whether we voted for him or not, because he represented America. Even those who might have been aware of a Presidents shortcomings did not openly discuss them. Over time, politics became less gentlemanly with attack ads, name calling, and heated (and occasionally unprofessional) debate. Still for the most part the seasoned political operators refrained from making a spectacle of themselves. If you didn't agree with what the President said in a joint session of Congress you just didn't clap. You registered your disagreement publicly by remaining stoic and unimpressed even when those across the aisle stood and clapped. In the early 1990s the protocol changed. Bill Clinton was heckled by republicans during at least three of his State of The Union addresses, first in 1993 when he cited CBO statistics on the deficit. George Bush was booed by democrats in 2005 when he claimed that Social Security would be "exhausted and bankrupt" in 2042. Last night Mr Wilson moved to a new low when he shouted "You lie!" in response to President Obama's statement that health reform would not insure illegal immigrants. I'm not sure what Mr. Wilson was thinking that drove him to his irrational outburst but it was pretty sad. Since the PolitiFact organization has determined that Mr. Wilson was dead wrong I can only assume that he thought it would show strength??? to the voters back home, or he has fallen victim the the mindless argument that all Democrats are evil. Whatever the reason, I am sorry it happened. I fro one prefer the days of the thoughtful respectful politician. You can review the PolitiFact opinion at their website.

The Kabuki Dance

The more I listen to the political debate (if you can call it that) the more confused I become. When did it become a problem for our President to reach out and talk to us? And by us I mean any of the various group we might use to describe ourselves, like military members, unions, congress, educators, or students. Yes the President, who was elected by all of "us", is going to speak to our children. Wait you say, I didn't vote for him. True perhaps but if you are an American citizen the system used to elect him is yours. We are a democracy! In theory we work together in support of whoever is elected for the betterment of the collective. In U.S. politics if two people or more run for an office someone is going to lose. Unfortunately losing can bring out the worst in people. If it were our children, most of us (I hope) would feel a bit embarrassed and try to discourage the spiteful, vindictive lashing out behavior that would cause us to characterize someone as a sore loser. And yet almost every time I read or watch political commentary I get an overwhelming urge to throw a yellow flag and yell UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT at the top of my lungs. We have lost sight of the healthy, thoughtful political debate that makes many people from other countries look up to us. The recent debate over the Presidents health care proposal seemed to focus more on who proposed it than on what it would mean for America and her citizens. Constructive debate from either side of the isle might have moved us toward a "win-win" solution incorporating the best parts of multiple proposals, and yet there was little of what I would characterize as constructive debate.

Back to the issue at hand. The President wants to talk to our children. I have read the text of the speech and there is no language there to insight our kids to rise up against us. In fact I didn't find anything that I don't think 98% of parents would agree with, and yet there is an uproar of opposition. Is there fear that a man that we do not like because of political party might say something to our children that we agree with? Why was there no concern when either of the President's Bush spoke to schoolchildren, or President's Clinton or Reagan? Oh my gosh I have it ... what if our children actually listen to and are inspired by the Democratic ne'r-do-well. Ouch, they might decide to pay attention, focus on their education and think they can do something important in life. Outlandish! This will never do ... we should protest, call him names like "Hitler wanna be" or something. We could preach hate and ask our parishioners to pray for the death of the president as Pastor Steven Anderson is said to have done from the pulpit of his Tempe Arizona church. Of course he is also someone who could not manage an intelligent answer to even simple questions. Evidently he agrees with nothing the President says just because "I hate Obama".

Ok I'll pull my tongue out of my cheek and get back to reality. I am really tired of those who would "lead" through polarizing a group against the President rather than by promoting respectful, constructive dialogue in the finest tradition of our democracy. I had a boss once who had a knack for seeing through the drama when it was used to hide a lack of substance. he referred to it as a Kabuki dance. Kabuki is a wonderful form of Japanese theater involving of song and dance dramatic stories and lots of makeup. My boss described a Kabuki Dance as "a glorious presentation full of sound and fury signifying nothing."

I, for one, prefer substance over drama.