The horror and shock I’m reading and hearing on social media about emails from Democratic National Headquarters are so hypocritical that they’re almost funny. Almost.
This is a dreadful election, maybe the worst in US history and we’ve had some pretty bad elections. That being said, I’m not shocked. No one who has been paying attention for the past forty or fifty years … or read any American history has a right to be surprised, much less shocked.
This is what our political system has always been. The major parties decide who their candidates will be and then do anything and everything to make sure it happens according to plan. It’s how the system works. It has not substantially changed since George Washington was selected (not elected) to be the first President of the United States.
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil
is for good men to do nothing.
— Edmund Burke
Everyone knows how political parties behave. And what they do. Both parties do the same stuff within their own parties and to the other party. Occasionally (Watergate springs to mind) — more often now with email, hackers, and social media — someone gets caught. Mostly, not. Frequently, this behavior is an open secret, so it never makes the news. It’s just “business as usual.”
Fast forward to 2016. Politics has reached a brutal pinnacle. We accepted this as a norm years ago and have participated in the system by choosing to abstain from involvement (“it’s somebody else’s problem”) or by actively encouraging it. Either way, no one has clean hands. No one is holding the moral high ground of righteous indignation.
Nonetheless, I see everyone acting like “OH MY GOD! Look at this bad behavior! We’ve never seen anything like this before.” Really? Have you been living under a rock?
This is part of the show, part of the game. If someone gets caught with his or her hand in the proverbial cookie jar, whoever didn’t get caught gets to play innocent victim. In my opinion, there is no such thing as an innocent politician. Probably not in any country and certainly not in this one.
Failing to acknowledge that all politicians are or have been part of the same system makes the system impossible to change. Bernie Sanders is no babe in the woods. Like everyone else, he has always known how the game is played. He has played it too.
I repeat for the record: This is how it has always been. We’ve tolerated and encouraged it. We’ve found it amusing. Justified it. Turned it into TV shows and movies. It’s been the favorite fodder of late night comedians as long as we’ve had late night comedians. It’s time for the next act of our national theater: Innocence Offended. We pretend this is something that “happened” while we weren’t looking and therefore, we (the people) are not responsible.
We are all responsible. This is our system. How ironic that one party has decided the antidote to ugly politics is even uglier politics.
We find comfort and sanctuary from the terrible truth by telling each other and ourselves we didn’t know. Which isn’t true. We all know. Knew.
You can’t right wrongs by perpetrating more and greater wrongs. Just because something is legal and constitutional does not make it a good idea — or right. Time to end the hypocrisy. Stop pretending. Accept responsibility for a system we all share.
Let’s take a pass on the moral indignation and deal with reality. Until we do, nothing can change.
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Categories: Daily Prompt, Media, News, Politics, social media
Serendipity Seeking Intelligent Life on Earth 
This is the cream of the crop. (cough). To run the most important country on the planet.
Same up here though – look at the clown we have!
I ask again: “Where are the great men (and women) of history?” Were they a myth?
No wonder nobody votes.
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I don’t think they were a myth, but I think we were lucky to have them and lucky they were WILLING to serve. We have made politics a very unattractive choice for people. We pry into their personal lives, make fun of them, and generally make their lives miserable. What’s REALLY funny is that we always have done that, since the beginning, but now we have electronic media too … more effective ways of invading their privacy to the point where they have no place to hide. The best and the brightest don’t want any part of politics. It doesn’t pay well — not compared to the private sector — and everyone picks on you all the time. Anyone with even a bone from a skeleton in his or her closet won’t take the chance. Garry refused. He had a bunch of opportunities, but he said “HELL no.” And that’s how we wound up here. Perhaps we need to rethink whether or not any sane person would want to be “president” anymore.
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I can some truth in that. Very sad. And tragic.
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You couldn’t pay me enough to be any kind of pol. Most people would NEVER run for office. The result is the people who want the job have strong egos, money, and believe there’s nothing in their past for which anyone could fault them — or that they’ve hidden it so well, no one can find it (and look how well that’s going). Everyone has something in their past they’d rather not make public … and there aren’t that many people willing to put themselves out there. If we are going brutalize politicians, we will only have politicians who can deal with being brutalized. For good or ill, it’s our own fault.
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Of course politics is dirty. There’s power on offer. How dirty depends on how much power is involved. it wouldn’t be so bad if you could believe they acted from a deep and honourable conviction that the welfare of the country (any country) depended on it, but 99% of the time it’s 110% to do with their own egos, and the ego factor is rising by leaps and bounds every year. Not that I’m cynical or anything.
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Cynical is sensible. I think both Clintons mean to do good. I’ve met them both and they are good people. With huge egos. But who in politics DOESN’T have a gigantic, hungry ego which needs constant feeding?Who else goes into politics? I doubt it has ever been different, not since Rome. The same crap was an issue more than 2000 years ago. What does that say about the nature of politics and people? “La plus ca change…” and all that.
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Right on, Marilyn! 🙂 The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil
is for good men to do nothing.
— Edmund Burke
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I get mad at people who always whine about the problems, but don’t even bother to vote or ever in their lives get involved. They are a big part of the problem. Though, to be fair, I’m not sure that you can “solve” politics. No country ever has, not in the history of the world.
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the power of darkness is right. great post Marilyn
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That’s the difference for me. All politics is about ego, power, money, and making deals. Like most people, I accept that. I just want the deal makers to make deals I can live with and which might actually benefit someone besides themselves. Garry thinks Trump may be the anti-Christ. I think he may be right.
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We all know if their mouths are moving, it probably isn’t good for us. It makes me wonder how many will not vote at all because there really is no choice – neither shows any hope of ‘leadership’ just an unhealthy thirst for power.
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Someone will be elected. I prefer it not be the racist misogynist. Call me crazy, but to me that really IS a choice — between business as usual and the powers of darkness.
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I am absolutely shocked and appalled by the shoddy, corrupt politics of the presidential campaign. May I have my winnings, please.
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This could be the start of a great friendship. And here are your winnings, sir.
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What “winnings” no one mentioned any winnings to me?
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It’s a quote from “Casablanca.”
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Great post. Nail on head
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Thank you. I couldn’t believe everyone behaving like such a thing was unheard of. Really? Seriously? And some of this was coming from people who worked in media for more than 40 years. You cannot tell me they didn’t know how things work. I want to whack them over the head … wake them up or put them to sleep. Either one works for me 🙂
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Truth is that this is probably not the worst negative election stuff in history but the first times it’s been brought to the surface so efficiently. We usually don’t hear about this kind of stuff until it’s well over. We can thank modern communication technology for this recent turn of events
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I’m not sure we are better off knowing.
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Didn’t say “knowing” was indicative of us being better off.., just pointing out the time lag of the past and the immediacy of the present.
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