The Politics of Anger and Discontent

It is human nature to focus on what is wrong. As an English teacher, not only would I point out your spelling and grammar errors, I would also identify mistakes in logic and congruency, and if your handwriting was unreadable, then I wouldn’t even bother with the assignment at all. That’s why everyone loved his or her English teacher in school. They always emphasized all the “write” things.

Our political discourse is similar. You may support our president, but only because you really hate Democrats and all that they stand for. You might vote for Joe Biden, but your main reason for doing so is because you can’t stand the thought of the current president remaining in office for another four years. I want to change that way of thinking. I don’t want you to vote against my opponent, instead I want you to show your support for me.

There is an inherent tension between the rights of the individual and the interests of the “common good.” It is the purpose of government to find the appropriate balance between these two competing ideals. Philosophically conservative Republicans promote a smaller role for government. However, just as I believe that the role of teachers is to teach, the role of health care professionals is to keep us healthy, and the role of law enforcement is to protect us - the role of government officials is to govern. This is especially true now as we must contain a health and economic crisis. For example, the Midland dam catastrophe needs a government response to lessen the pain and suffering of families who lost everything, and the conservative mindset is frankly ill-prepared to deal with such a crisis. The mantra of lower taxes and smaller government cannot appropriately provide an adequate response. Instead our government leaders need to be guided by compassion, cooperation, creativity and commitment.

Republicans have been in control of a gerrymandered House of Representatives in our state for the past 10 years. The last time a Democratic governor had the opportunity to work with a Democratic-majority legislature was 1983! Especially now, as we face so many challenges, Gov. Whitmer needs a legislature which will work with her, and not focus on petty partisan posturing and frivolous lawsuits. Now is not the time to indulge in politics of anger and discontent. Instead we must be guided by compassion and cooperation to assist those most in need.