Political Involvement
Probably, a political conversation is one of the most contentious, and maybe even painful, activities that we want to avoid. Whenever someone tries to elicit our opinion on the policies of the mayor, governor or president, we raise our hands in a defensive gesture, as if we were being shot at. We just can’t seem to have rational conversations about the government that affects us so much.
Too often an innocent remark about the wisdom of a governmental policy turns out to be a street fight between me battling for my party and the other guy fighting for his. As in all street-brawls the gloves and the rules are ditched. Anything goes. All the fallacious arguments are in play. At the end of it all everyone is angry and tired without anything having been accomplished. We mutter to ourselves, as we walk away, “I’ll never get suckered into that again”. We’ll be content to talk only to those that think like us.
In the back of our minds we know that we all ought to engage in reasonable discourse about the social and economic worries affecting everyone. But how to do it, so that we feel our efforts are contributing to the solutions of our problems?
Common sense tells us that the word, politics, means coming together to sort out and to address our common concerns. If we look up the word, politic, in the dictionary to see how it is used, we will find contradictions. The first meaning given by Webster is “practical wisdom”, and the second is “unscrupulous”. Unfortunately, whenever we hear the adjective “political”, we often associate it with self-serving and borderline criminal behaviors on the part of some elected officials. Even honest politicians don’t want their intentions and actions tagged, “political”.
Too many people in government that have been entrusted with the privilege and responsibility of caring for the common good have stolen the power of public office for their own self-aggrandizing purposes. As a result “politics” has become a dirty word signifying back-stabbing, power-grabbing, and chicanery rampant in all our institutions. We talk of church politics, school politics and corporate politics to imply shady dealings, like “you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”.
How did we get into this sorry situation? One hypothesis claims that the system is broken, as if the political system were an overused, broken down car. But, maybe we have a Rolls Royce system with lousy drivers and sleeping passengers. The other hypothesis claims that a political system means a government of, by and for the people. Then, comparing the well-being of the political body to the health of our biological body is a more fitting analogy. All the parts of the physical body have to be functioning well and participating with each other for their own well-being and for the well-being of the whole body. The health of our political system demands the same dynamic interaction among the citizens as well as caring for our own self-interests. This analogy tells that the system is okay, but people in it are not doing what they ought to do.
We will restore the word, politics, to its true meaning, namely, the art of using practical wisdom and prudence in the service of the common good, provided we dialogue within ourselves and with each other about personal and common interests.
Although common sense highlights the importance of communal dialogue, it also warns us about the difficulties attached to it. We come to reason with each other, because we assume people have different points of view about an issue and because everyone wants a share of the decision making power. Politics is a tough game, but we can keep it clean, if we stick to the common sense rules of reason and ethics. The best game is played when the players are at their best. Since we are all players in the game of politics, we better show up prepared to play.
The following example demonstrates how to use Vision Circles to guide a self-dialogue about our political concerns. The same program with some modifications can be used for a communal dialogue on political issues.
(Note: Obviously, a group Vision Circles workshop on any topic such as, politics, stress, career development, marriage, etc. will be enriched if conducted by an expert on those topics, especially, when we are challenged to connect our ideals to practical concepts in Step Three.)
Circle One: What am I saying to myself about political issues such as, taxes, the school system, the economy, and health insurance?
“It’s the same old, same old. My taxes are constantly going up. Much faster than my salary and faster than inflation. What the hell is the government doing with all this money? And this year the state is increasing its spending even though it’s in the hole for billions. And the federal government just goes on printing more money. How long can this go on? And what am I getting out of all this? The schools in the city are in bad shape. So, I have to send my kids to a private school. Transportation prices keep going up and up. And on and on it goes. What will the future be for my kids?”
Circle Two: What am I feeling, thinking and doing about my political concerns?
My feelings – I feel angry, frustrated and powerless.
My thinking – I’m expecting politicians to act responsibly. I expect them to care for the common good. I’m assuming politicians have the knowledge and skills to solve problems.
My behaviors – I’m complaining and criticizing. I’m giving myself excuses for not getting involved.
Circle Three: What are the political ideals that I’m in touch with?
I believe that the citizens ought to be concerned about the common good.
I believe that the people in government ought to behave wisely, prudently courageously.
We all need to be involved in some way to make the system work.
Circle Four: What irrational, rational and supra-rational tendencies am I experiencing when I talk to myself about political issues?
(See the Human Tendencies Profile in the Introduction.)
Irrational
I’m confused about what I ought to do.I feel powerless and dependent on politicians.
I’m angry and rebellious.
I’m skeptical. I don’t trust any politician.
Rational
Things are out of order. Too much debt. Too much waste.
I want to get a feeling of control over my future.
Supra-rational
I’m in touch with my vision of what is important: the common good,my own interests, wisdom and prudence to bring about a balance.
I feel free to think about what I want to do, but how do I get my ideas into action.
I need to change my thinking and behaviors to become active.
Label the negatives and the positives in each circle, and identify the changes that I need to make.
Circle One: What are the positive and the negatives in my self-talk?
Circle Two: What negative emotions are consuming me? What’s unreasonable about my thinking? What behaviors are unproductive?
Circle Three: What ideals am I in touch with? Do I need to add any?
I’m in touch with the ideals of wisdom and prudence that are necessary to balance the common good with self-interests.
I’m in touch with the ideal citizen participation in the political process.
Circle Four: hat irrational tendencies do I need to minimize? What rational and supra-rational tendencies do I need to maximize?
I need to overcome my confusion by focusing my attention on my vision of what is important in the political process, namely, rational dialogue and power sharing.
I need to overcome my dependence on politicians and political dogmas by thinking freely.
I need to overcome my unproductive anger by exploring new ways of bringing order and control into our social and economic lives.
I need to think creatively, so that I can discover practical ideas that will realize my political ideal of balancing the common good with self-interests wisely and prudently.
In this step we are shining the light of our ideals on the political issues that concern us. Then, we can easily see the “disconnect” between ‘what-is’ and ‘what-could-be’. The challenge is to discover practical ideas that will help us inch our way toward the realization of our ideals. The first two steps prepared us to strengthen our rational tendencies and our supra-rational tendencies, so that we would be mentally and emotionally ready to think creatively in step three.
Asking questions
Some key ideas for doing creative thinking are: stay focused on the problem, the more questions the better, the more ideas the better, pay attention and listen, don’t rush to solutions, sift and sort your questions and practical ideas in the light of your ideals, the best practical ideas will shine like gems in the sunlight.
Q: What are the purposes of the political process?
A: To keep us secure and free; to care for the common good; to protect individual interests; to involve everyone in the decision making process.
Q: What are the common ideals that everyone brings to the table?
A: Freedom, economic well-being, wisdom, prudence, the common good.
Q: Who are the different players in the political process?
A: All the citizens with their different interests
Q: What is the political process like?
A:
- The biology of the human body. Each part has its own form and function. All the parts work together for the good of the whole and for their own good.
- A symphonic orchestra. There are many different instruments and musicians, but the musical score is the same for all. The conductor, who can be replaced, evokes excellence and harmony, provided the musicians are attentively listening and cooperating.
Searching for practical ideas
(What practical ideas will help the political body and the political orchestra to perform harmoniously for the achievement of the common good and the protection of individual interests?)
Brainstorming
Like every player in the orchestra that pays attention to the musical composition, every citizen has to pay attention to the constitution.
Like all the players in the orchestra that practice out of their own self-interest to become excellent, all citizens have to get good at what they do such as, a business owner, a parent, a teacher, a politician, etc.
Like every part in the human body that interacts with all the other parts, all citizens have to interact with each other.
Like the immune system in the body the citizens in the political process have to be on the look out for whatever is dangerous to the common good.
Like the conductor of the symphonic orchestra that is experienced and knows music, citizens need to elect politicians that are knowledgeable and experienced.
(We can do the same exercise to come up with analogies that fit the economic, health care and educational systems. Analogies will help us discover practical ideas to address the problems in those areas.)
Sift and sort for the most practical ideas:
Paying attention to the constitution, listening to each other, interacting with politicians, and demanding excellence seem to be practical ways of realizing my political ideals.
1. Participation and involvement
- Start a local discussion group on the constitution.
- Have one of the organizations that I belong to set up a lecture series or seminars on common good.
- Join the local political club that interests me.
2. Prudent and wise government
- Write to local, state and federal representatives about my concerns. Ask for the steps that are being taken to address these concerns.
- Set up a writing group of ten to fifteen people that will prepare one letter with fifteen signatures. Encourage others to set up writing groups. Politicians pay attention to numbers. One donor can give $2000, but 15 votes are worth more.
3. Economic security and prudent planning and wise use of money
- Demand town hall meetings on specific budget proposal increases. Eg. The prison population in New York State fell from171,000 in 1999 to less than 59,000 in 2009. However, the public safety budget increased by 43% half of which went to prison operations. Why?
- Set up a discussion group to find ways to devise an economic auto-immune system to prevent the economic bleeding. How can we monitor the spending of government agencies?
Plan a specific course of action that will implement two or three of the practical ideas in Step Three.
- I will inform myself on the economic and legislative issues by reading the local, state and federal websites.
- I’ll write my government representatives by e-mail on pending legislation.
- I’ll start a discussion group on the constitution and the common good.
Check the results of my plan of action.
- Has my self-talk become more optimistic?
- Have my negative emotions diminished?
- Do I feel more hopeful and confident about the future?
- Has my plan been effective in getting me and other people more politically involved?
- What do I need to change in or add to my plan to make it more effective?