Depleted Government: It is our mirror image
Hardly a day passes that we Americans do not think or hear about how our Government has deteriorated into an inept, immoral, self-serving morass. The following quote spoken over 130 years ago should provide some insight as to its origin.
…”the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave, and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature. . . If the next centennial does not find us a great nation . . . it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.” -James Garfield, July 1877
Such eloquent words from James Garfield a few years before he became the President of the United States, they are as prescient today as the day they were spoken; it certainly illustrates the point that we get the Government we deserve. In America, we seem to be missing the fact that our politicians are a mirror image of our collective society. A collective that is a mix of the politically active members of our society (informed or not) as well as ones that choose to remain indifferent. If the active members elect a reckless and immoral Government while the indifferent members remain uninvolved, they too are choosing this same Government through toleration. Simply stated, our Government and its policy are forged by a minority of active members operating within the span of tolerance of the inactive members, until that tolerance yields and they become engaged. Regardless of whether members of society choose to be involved or uninvolved, concerned or indifferent, it is a choice that each is making about the Government that will represent them, thus producing our warranted outcome as a whole.
This can be a painful admission to many citizens in our nation that feel the Government does not represent their values even though they are very informed and active on the political scene. Government can never be better than the collective average of all its citizens. The question to answer becomes what is this collective average of our values as Americans and how each individual’s values compare to it. If you are an individual that has a higher set of values than the collective average, you will likely meet constant frustration trying to understand or bring about change with little success. This will continue unless a faction of uninvolved, like-minded people can be urged into participating to bring about change. On the other hand, if you happen to fall within the collective average or below, you will likely think that everything is wonderful and right in America and nothing should change.
Considering this view that our Government is a mirror image of its people, and we contemplate such Government, then what can we deduce about the character of Americans collectively?
March 6th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
You make a valid point here, of course the question is what can we as average Americans do to combat this cesspool. Unless you have very deep pockets it seems improbable that an individual can do too much.
March 6th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
There are a couple of points that flashed through my mind as I read the above posting. The first one being is that the “silent majority” or the “inactive members” need to step up and take part in their civic responsibility as an American citizen by voting, contacting state representatives, making their voices heard. We as a people cannot wait for our co-workers, neighbors or someone else to start taking action. We the people, also need to take part in the freedoms allowed in this coutry that our service men/women are fighting for each day to confront issues and quell the “noisy minority” there is power to create change in numbers. The article is right on… it should make people step back and think.
March 8th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
No small source of strength in the U.S. economy is Americans’ capacity for failure. They excel at pratfalls. They file for bankruptcy and emerge without permanent social stigma. They recognize error and put it behind them. This new administration should thus turn a deaf ear to suggestions to manipulate energy prices, prop up housing prices, suppress short selling in the stock market, or otherwise try to prolong boom-time errors. Japan, refusing to let its own great bubble deflate, suffered a decade of economic stagnation. The United States, too, must take its bubble-related lumps, of which the current financial crisis is clearly one. But as the 44th president would be wise to remind his compatriots, the United States has no time for lost decades. Let markets clear and a new day dawn.
March 9th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
The blame rests squarely with the voters of this country. The quote that was included in the above post is timeless and gives us insight into the founder’s thought process. This is why the advocated education, both secular and religious with the emphasis on religious. WE have forgotten what made this country great. We are a society addicted to spending and easy outs. Like an addict we will never recover until we hit bottom and admit that we are addicted. I fear we are getting dangerously close to the bottom. Hopefully we will have our epiphany when we arrive there. Meanwhile we have to answer out constitutional call to duty and educate our fellow citizens on their responsibilities. It is not all about the rights, without out responsible participation we will have no rights.