Election Results Early
by Miki Saxon
In January, 2008, when I was writing Leadership Turn, I wrote that politicians aren’t leaders.
We have no leaders, let alone statesmen, just ideologues, elected by like-minded ideologues, who care only about getting reelected, bringing government money back to their constituency and making lucrative connections in the event they aren’t reelected or are caught by term limits.
The following month I considered the difference between politicians and statesmen.
Politicians talk it — Statesmen walk it
Politicians run to win — Statesmen run to serve
Politicians are ideologues — Statesmen are open-minded
Politicians, “it’s all about me” — Statesmen, “it’s all about them”
Politicians focus on the next election — Statesmen focus on the future
In 2010 I reprised parts from them in another post about the idiocy of ideology.
Einstein also said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”
Americans must be insane; we will go to the polls flip the party in charge and expect different results.
Based on the past, what we will get is a different ideology that screws up differently, not better results.
Sadly, nothing much has changed in the intervening years; a notion that will be proved tomorrow.
Please note that much of the interest and value in these posts is found in the comments and discussion they generated.
November 5th, 2012 at 12:42 pm
I have a friend in New Zealand. He thinks the USA’s political system is the oddest thing ever. They have multiple parties there not just 2 major ones and when it is time for elections . . . well just say they are over and done with relatively quickly when compared to our year long campaign season.
They also have the right there to petition to put a law in place – the people themselves!!! Wouldn’t that be novel?
I did point out to him that a country the size of New Zealand has a lot better chance of passing a law by petition than a country our size – which he did concede – but overall he thinks we are nuts!
Plus of course he thinks that the USA concentrates on the short term and is out of touch with what is really important in the long term for the world.
November 5th, 2012 at 1:45 pm
It’s hard to argue with your friend about us being nuts.
The US is out of touch; it still thinks it is/should be the guiding light for the world; believes that our form of democracy is the only acceptable philosophy and would love to cram it down every countries throat; definitely thinks short-term, which is the legacy of Wall Street where long-term is a quarter (3 months). And since we only think short-term for ourselves how could we possibly think long-term for the world—assuming we ever thought of the world as anything but an adjunct of the US?
November 6th, 2012 at 6:51 am
My eyes have been opened since I started having international friends. I did not know the rest of the world saw us how they do and I certainly don’t like it.
This same gentleman told me that our being involved in the middle east is all about us trying to impose our religion on the world. I was dumbfounded since that is that last thing that occurred to me. Yes he says – Americans are all about religion. True or not – perception is everything . . .
I also have an English fiance. He often says to me he is English first, British second and European third . . .
I’ve never gone beyond the – “I’m an American stage” . .. just another example of the fact we have a narrow view – here in the midwest at least.
November 7th, 2012 at 9:01 pm
Your friend has several points, but our involvement in the Middle East has as much to do with oil as with religion.
And while the religion thing is newish the arrogance is old. The Ugly American was published in 1958 and the term became ubiquitous when describing Americans who had to “Americanize” everything and every place they went.
That attitude also underlies the xenophobia that so many Americans demonstrate these days; even the definition of “American” keeps being narrowed.
One hope of the Internet is that it will reverse the trend and help broaden American attitudes towards and tolerance or people who look/think/act differently.
Probably not in my lifetime, but eventually.