If you have been following any political news, you have probably noticed any voting in congress is almost always a 'Red v Blue' battle, and virtually nothing gets done. What little production there is always causes arguments, name calling, and plenty of fuel for the Glenn Becks and Ariana Huffingtons of the world.
I was recently offered to review a book that addresses such partisanship, and I love it. The book, Cure Your Democracy, not only discusses the dangerousness of partisanship in a 21st century environment, but it proves that this partisanship is, in actuality, A DISEASE.
Yep, you heard right. If you're hardcore left or right, you are diseased. But fret not, there is a cure!
This book is, of course, a little tongue in cheek. It reads almost like a medical journal, and took me a few days to paw through the 260-plus pages. However, it was well-worth the read, and I recommend this book to anyone who gives a damn about politics.
As for me, I'm mostly a centrist, but have found myself infected with both diseases (Democratitus and Democratosis) at different stages of my life. Nowadays, I'd like to consider myself virtually political-disease free, but I carry around a 55-gallon drum of Purell just in case.
(...the way political strife is growing in this country, I'm considering a Haz-Mat suit as well...)
The book will help you test for, identify, and (hopefully) treat whichever disease you find yourself infected with. There are allergy tests (Does NASCAR turn you on? Does the thought of Michael Moore make you queasy?) which will make you smirk, and by the time you reach the 'Treatment' section you'll have a goofy grin on your face about how stupid partisanship really is.
Taking the thought of this partisanship and extremism as an actual illness, it becomes obvious to me. Rush, Fox News, MSNBC, Thom Hartmann and other far left/right outlets are only spreading this disease and making it more powerful by the hour. If we want to cure this pandemic, we need to treat it at the source and eliminate the major contagions.
Yet, both sides would argue that Knowledge is Power, free speech, and the like. It's a shame too, since these political shepherds are corralling as many mindless sheep as possible, and all in the name 'of the greater good.'
Speaking as someone who has voted both R and D, depending on the person and the issue, I would like to see partisanship end. Mr. Cooker also has a petition going to help end partisanship and get American moving forward. If you think like I do, and want to see an end to 'politics as usual' please click the below button and sign with me.
Again, I highly recommend this book if you like to read about politics. While I'll never run for office, I do care where this country goes, and make sure to vote at every election. Whether on the left, right, or somewhere in the middle, Cure Your Democracy is a book you need to read.
Also be sure to check out www.cureyourdemocracy.com.
It really does feel like things are getting out of hand. Does it give any good, concrete suggestions on how to end it?
ReplyDeleteIt has some good suggestions, but doesn't exactly call for the death of Rush Limbaugh...
ReplyDeleteI don't think any one book can solve such a huge problem, but it at least gets the mind pointed in a good direction.
The two party system really is broken. It's almost like a sport for people, they feel like they have to choose one side or the other.
ReplyDeleteI think any political party leads to a scramble for power...which then edges to power at all costs. In this interconnected internet age you'd think that they would start experimenting with more innovative ways to poll people on a more regular basis...listening to the real voice of the people and driving direct democracy rather than representative democracy
ReplyDeleteThe Tau would like a word with this so-called 'greater good'.
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspective though. In a similar fashion, rumors are like a virus. Curious how non-physical things populate our world, isn't it?
Our political system is incredibly fucked. Change doesn't happen because it is not allowed to happen.
ReplyDeleteEveryone wants to blame both political parties for the shit storm that we have, but it's mostly people with the most money who get to decide which laws are made. And those people are mostly Republicants. You don't see Democrats trying to defund the EPA so corporations can pollute to their hearts content.
Like Bill Maher says, both parties are bad, but theirs is worse. I'm sorry.
I started a blog post about 6 months ago about how Americans seem to get so fired up about their political side and candidate that it's almost identical to how they root for their favorite sports teams. But it didn't seem to fit my site so I abandoned it.
ReplyDeletePolitics have become more of an issue of competitiveness, rather than wanting the candidate who is best for our country. People just want their team/candidate to win at all costs. It has me completely turned off of the whole political process.
SD
Great review, I'll have to check this out after I'm done with some other things I'm reading!
ReplyDeleteIf you liked this book I highly suggest you take a look at "Liberal Fascism" by Jonah Goldberg, it is incredibly informative, unbiased and uses historical FACTS to shed light upon the past of western 'democracy' and how it was built on the ideals of European Socialism & Fascism before negative connotations were attached to those words. (It's startling and eye opening in a 'why didn't I notice this in history class?' kind of way).
ReplyDeleteThe Left is the Right and the Right is the Left in so many ways that it really makes you wonder how 'democracy' lasted this long, Partisan Politics and all.
Here in Canada we have a "first past the post" system (first party to gain 'majority' rules), and our system is broken too, has been for a long time & the government has even acknowledged this fact, yet refuses to change it. Fair Representation is a joke in Canada due to our centralized populace, and much like the US people often vote on a Liberal or Conservative basis, as they are the 'oldest' parties. Younger political groups are often overshadowed or forgotten regardless of their platforms. So despite the fact that Canadians have the choice to vote for 1 of 6 options, it usually comes down to 2, to partisanship.
Tsaritsa, I love ya! Pointing to political gridlock and insisting that both parties are equally to blame is a false equivalence we should resist. When some folks can defend political views that disregard the welfare of the poor, elderly, or infirm on behalf of the wealthy or well-connected, it's understandable others take exception to those positions. Suggesting informed people agree to things they consider basic injustices is an unreasonable expectation. Both parties share the blame for the gridlock, but only one of them is looking to protect the least among us from the powerful. We abandon the field to the Koch Brothers to acheive "harmony" and what we'll get instead is a government that follows their mantra, "I/Me/Mine".
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone would be happy with the result.
No one likes the current system or the constant bickering, but some things are too important to simply leave to the folks with all the power.