no, really. i was. for hours at a time i\’d sit in the library at olaf and devour centuries-old texts from john stuart mill, jean-jacques rousseau, hobbes, plato, locke, marx… nearly all of it fantastic stuff, explaining how the world works– or at least how it ought to work. i briefly, foolishly, contemplated a career in politics: to experience the life dedicated to serving the country and constituents, and to apply my knowledge of political theory to making the world a better place.
reality hit. in the form of a month-long internship at (then) congressman bill luther\’s office in january 1998. lewinsky aside, being a political intern isn\’t the most glamorous gig, but it was more than that: i got to see inside the machine (ugly) and, worse, i got a glimpse of the intolerance, ignorance, and spite that some spout under the guise of political discourse.
i don\’t read much plato these days. however, stories like this are all too familiar. i\’ll grant that this link displays conservatives in a bad light, but i\’d be writing even if the parties were reversed. this line, in particular, sickens me:
Liberalism kills the goose that lays the golden eggs.
can you *truly* believe that level of rhetoric? i suppose some folks– if you watch enough FAUXNews– do. in fact, one might argue that the white house is currently occupied with people who exhibit that level of thinking. (if you\’re not for me, you\’re against me.) but where\’s the sense of compromise? how about working together for the embetterment (sorry) of the world instead of dogmatically stating that the other side is always completely, utterly, and inalterably wrong.
or maybe i\’m expecting too much.
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