Archive: Opinions

Most years I get a heads-up about the Tompkins County Democratic Committee's annual chicken dinner in Stewart Park.  I like covering and writing about it, because it is a snapshot of local Democratic politics.  I am hoping to be able to cover this year's event later this summer.  This year I was alerted to the annual Republican version, a dinner, which took place Saturday.  It was equally fascinating.

Believe it or not, most of the people on either side are... people.  They have different approaches to making life better, but few of them resemble the monsters they sometimes publicly call each other.  For the most part I don't find them to be clueless or disconnected or misguided or evil.  In fact I admire them all, Republicans and Democrats, for stepping up to make the quality of life better for residents.

The parties, even on the most local level, clearly have very different viewpoints on how to make that happen.  Sometimes they have drastically differing viewpoints.  The problem comes when they use that as an excuse to behave badly at the expense of the people that elected them.  I hate going to parties where Democrats self-righteously categorize Republicans as stupid, evil, out of touch morons.  I equally hate it when Republicans harp on morally bankrupt Democrats who don't care about America and democracy.

Robert Fulghum's book, 'All I Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten', narrows down life's important lessons to these:

• Share everything.
• Play fair.
• Don’t hit people.
• Put things back where you found them.
• Clean up your own mess.
• Don’t take things that aren’t yours.
• Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody.
• Wash your hands before you eat.
• Flush.
• Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.

All of us should remind ourselves of these basic tenets that lead to a balanced, happy life.  Especially when we talk about politics.  One of the things we are taught about early, at least in the United States,  is that everyone is different, and that it is good to be an individual.  We seem to forget this when talking about politics (and other hot topics like religion).  Shouldn't we celebrate our differences and then sit down and figure out what we agree on and work together to make that happen?

That is certainly not what happens these days in world and national politics, and I haven't heard about anything resembling that happening in Albany.  You see a little of it on the county level, and until relatively recently it was what Lansing Town government was all about.

Another piece of this is the natural inclination to only talk to people who agree with you.  A lot of times people assume I agree with them and say hurtful, hateful things.  I suppose I should be grateful that they think I am in their club.  But when elected officials only talk to the folks they agree with, they are not representing the people with another view.

People who make less of others to make more of themselves are not only boors, but they prevent any positive accomplishment.  They are bullies.  And they are what is wrong with politics and government in our modern world.  Unfortunately much of the press channels the bullying, aggrandizes it and fills endless hours with blowhard pundits they think will raise their ratings.

It seems to me that people on both sides of the proverbial aisle should be required to have dinner or drinks or something with each other once a week starting a few months before any election, and continuing through each elected term.  It is easy to demonize opponents when you refuse to have anything to do with them.  Much harder when you actually know them.  And important to know them, because you represent them as well as the choir that it is so easy to preach to.

We should all take Fulghum's advice.  And nobody gets warm cookies or cold milk unless they do.

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