Hayter’s Article –
November 10, 2016
Post Election Time
I don’t
know about you, but I’m glad it’s over. Things didn’t come out the way I
expected or hoped, but such is the way with politics. And, do-it-yourself
plumbing projects.
You want to know what’s weird? I’ll
tell you what’s weird. Less than half of the voting public just used a “rigged
system” to select a non-politician as President-elect of the United States. And
– get this -- they did it without firing a shot. Is this a great country or
what?
There are
two upsides to this election. I heard no one try to make an argument about the
Republicans being the party of Jesus. That was soooo refreshing. Also, the
Democrats no longer have to suffer the slings and arrows of the opposition. The
sides are now swapped as the Democrats get to assume the role of insatiable griper,
while Republicans find themselves coming up with reasonable explanations as to
why stuff’s not working.
Britain refers
to the minority parties in Parliament as “The Loyal Opposition.” The parties
with fewer Parliamentary members get to ridicule all they want, but, during all
the debate, all sides maintain a loyalty to Queen and Country. The U.S. has come
close to that notion, but not recently.
President
Johnson used to call leaders of the two parties in Congress together to drink
and deal behind closed doors. After agreements were reached, Republican Senate
Minority leader, Everett Dirksen, would put pressure on a few of his own
members to vote along with the Democrats on certain hot-button issues like
Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act, in order to gain Democratic support
on bills with a Republican flavor. It’s called “politics.” Better known as
“compromise.”
Nowadays,
it’s near impossible for the President and Congress to negotiate in secret.
Keeping a secret in Washington
is like keeping green goo off the chin of a child who’s doing all he can to
scream, “Enough with the strained peas!” (You should see the analogies I edited
out.)
Most constituents refuse to believe
that their representatives would ever compromise. In fact, one party in
Congress has had members sign pledges they would not compromise on certain
issues. In 2012, 270 members of Congress
signed a pledge never to vote on any provision that called for a raise in
taxes. WWIII, cluster hurricanes, California
falls into the Pacific, the debt reaches 24 digits … no new revenues. That
definitely puts the kibosh on politics.
As long as we have a Constitution that
provides for Checks and Balances, things generally get done with the aid of compromise.
There are other forms of government that require no compromise. None of them
are indirect democracies.
A direct
democracy (everyone gets to vote on all actions of a government) is one of ‘em.
There are no elections necessary in a
direct democracy, so you can do whatever you wish. That’s why it’s referred to
as the most inefficient government known to man. Fortunately, there is no
working model of a direct democracy in the world today.
Our system of government is known
as an indirect democracy (voters select people to represent them in government).
It is the most inefficient government in practice today. And, as most would
agree, it beats the daylights out of the alternative forms. Uh, for those of us living in the “Free World.”
Will democracy
work in the Middle East? Those who are
experimenting with it at the moment are having fits. When your political
parties are based on religious sects, there is little to no compromise on
anything. Each side has pledged itself to their vision of what Allah expects of
them. The party that gets control is the one that manages to keep all others in
check.
Having one
group with all power, makes the government efficient as all get out. Put a stop
to crime, force worship, end worship, build a building, destroy a building,
eliminate a foe... In the words of Yul Brenner, “So let it be written. So let
it be done.” – Beg pardon? Oops. Yul Brenner played Pharaoh in “The Ten
Commandments?”
So, there
we have it. Governing is a bear. Manageable at times, but a chaotic mess at
others. And, now we have elected a person who scares the willies out of many of
us, but instills hope in the minds of less than half the voting public. Few of
the frightened view “hope” as realistic. The other side is giddy with
anticipation. It’s a part of the post election spirit.
That’s why
I think it best to end this piece with a quote from a man whose picture is
hanging on the wall to my right. After the election of 1932 between Herbert
Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt, Will Rogers said -- "There is only one
redeeming thing about this whole election. It will be over at sundown, and let
everybody pray that it's not a tie, for we couldn't go through with this thing
again.”
And the congregation said, “Amen!” – Next
time.
end
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