The View From Here

“I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians”

–Charles De Gaulle

We elect these people to do what we want, not what they think is best for us. Get involved. Vote at least. Stay informed on the topics of discussion (this is a daunting task). I think the politicians make their world complicated for the express purpose of making it as inaccessible as possible to the normal person. This is also the way they make themselves a valuable commodity. We have to have a “professional” politician representing us because they know all the ins and outs of the political world. But that isn’t the way it originally was. The founders of our country had in mind a system in which a person was chosen from among a group of people to represent that specific group. When this person’s time of service was up, they would return to whatever task they were doing originally before they were elected. The way I understand it, the founders did not intend on this being a career. And yet we have people in Washington that have been there for a long time.

Is our world so complicated that we need full time career politicians? I have heard the argument over and over that we need people elected who are experienced. I agree. Do the politicians really think so little of us? That there aren’t people intelligent enough to understand to the “goings on?” Doesn’t real life experience count? Or is this a convenient way for them to make themselves irreplaceable?

Power does corrupt given enough time. There has never existed and will not exist a human being whom this does not apply or will not hold true. Everyone is corruptible. I think our current political atmosphere (which I don’t think many people are happy with) is a result of this. Too few people with too much power, too removed from the people they represent, and from normal life, makes big trouble for the average constituent. Going to Washington (or your state’s government for that matter) should be an act of service to your country, not a pay raise and the road to power and fame.

How many people these days go into politics for the purpose of serving their country versus serving themselves? I don’t know if I really want to know the answer to that question. Some people might do it for both reasons. I am not suggesting that we not pay them for their work. What I am suggesting is implementing a solution that does not encourage people to get into politics for the money or power. Instead, it would encourage people to run for office when they have something they really believe in, they genuinely want to serve their country, or the people from their community really believe in them and want them to represent that community. This would mean less money being involved in the process. We would have to rely much more on debates and intelligent discussion rather than sensational ads and rehearsed dialog.

So I have said all this and I am sure you are wondering what my solution is. Term limits.

Many things would change. I think government would get simpler and more to the point. People in office would be making real decisions not calculated political maneuvers.  The purpose of this post is not to resolve all of the questions associated with instituting term limits. That is for a later discussion. Instead, it is to pose the question: Would we be better off with career politicians or genuine statesmen (and women)?

Brian