For a long time now, Americans have felt that the country is moving in the wrong direction without anyone clearly articulating what the right direction might be. As a result, they vote for whoever seems most likely to change the status quo.
A country’s society and its politics aren’t the same thing. There are countries with functional societies but dysfunctional politics. Over time, a country’s society may change substantially but its political system changes very little. The last few decades in the United States are an example.
Even so, many are looking towards politics to fix societal ills. I believe that’s a mistake. Asking for politics to fix society leads to disillusionment, disengagement or ever more radical politics. The solution doesn’t lie in politics, but in us using our freedoms to find better ways of being, and being with each other.
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Nehaveigur 
3 responses to “Politics Won’t Fix It”
[…] Still, this way of looking at economic performance is useful for calibrating expectations around the impact of domestic policies, and for assigning appropriate credit and blame for the nation’s economic health. Political discourse would be healthier acknowledging this. […]
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[…] As so often, the best way to improve things is to improve ourselves, rather than trying to improve others. […]
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[…] having arrived at the best ways of organizing government. Improving democracy would be great but isn’t necessary for the other items on my wish list. Neither have I considered how we would go from our current form of government to another while […]
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