Here at thatotherconservative, I generally consider myself pragmatic and consequentialist when it comes to views on political change and the avenues one must choose between to effectuate change. Yet it must be said that the way we come to make these choices has to be based on some sort of general principles to guide those specific case-by-case analyses we then attempt. One such principle which the American system of politics has seemed time and time again to ignore is that virtue generally known as patience. The ability to step back and wait for the opportune time to act based on the best information or recommendations seems generally forgotten by the mainstream media or the general public to whom they cater. Despite the casual disregard for thoughtful decision-making as a thing of the past and the more credible urgency with which politicians must act to avert impending socioeconomic crises, I will make the case that a return to simple patience must be the first step in getting to the root of our current problems, whether these patient moments manifest in the early formations of law-making or a campaign or even as the ballots are cast in the polling places or within a Congressional chamber.
No, this is not passivity or even political incoherence (as I have recently indicted the Occupy movement for falling victim to) but rather the forceful and immediate transition of political focus away from the cycle of bartering and compromise to a genuine discussion of political opinion schemas at their core. To take pieces of legislation and inject into them not merely the back and forth rain of sound bytes but rather real and responsive debate of the kind we seldom see anymore.
"How is this patience?" one might ask. Well, perhaps what I'm calling for is not patience in and of itself. At least not patience in some conventional definitions of the word. My point is that I am just as guilty as you when it comes to easily becoming plugged into Fox News or whatever ideology channel you tune into which, while entertaining, fails to accomplish much of anything except leaving a bad taste in my mouth about the way this country is headed. As such, we need the patience to turn off the TV, read through those propositions on your local ballots, and not take someone else's word for it that X policy or X candidate MUST be passed/elected now. I plan on discussing in the future more about the failure of our capitalism system to develop a truly functional system of consumer awareness to actually enforce democratic accountability where the government has so utterly failed. It is this same collective compulsion to be patient and to understand the issues for themselves that must be realized here and now.
Barack Obama rammed through the stimulus like it was a cake walk. Nancy Pelosi declared that Obamacare could be evaluated just as soon as it was passed. And who can blame them? In such an immature fashion, the American people fell for that ever elusive lure of "change" and in doing so wrote the Democrats a blank check to wreck havoc on the political sphere for as long as they did. And now we're reaping the rewards.
But it doesn't have to be this way. We can and should hold those in Washington accountable for all the experimentation with which they have clogged our economy, our culture, and our values. I sincerely hope that in these presidential debates all those watching, left or right, have an open mind toward the positions these candidates articulate. Many of us have pre-conceived notions of candidates, and they may very well be right. Yet it's not that hard for inclination to turn into devotion (as I have noticed in many supporters of certain candidates thus far). And such a cult of personality is what got us into this socioeconomic mess in the first place.
In a nutshell: Don't be passive. Don't be shy to speak your mind. But have some patience, please, in all your political decisions. The future of our country is, quite literally, at stake.
