This morning I began to write a post that described some of my views on how our system of justice operates and extrapolate them to society at large. The more I wrote, the more technical (read: boring) the post became. I’ve abandoned that effort for now but will attempt to summarize in a more relatable way the point I was trying to make. I’ll be brief.
Like some of you, I follow American politics pretty closely. I have done so my entire adult life. To state the obvious, our democracy has been on a path of increased polarization and division for several decades. Not that we were ever completely “united,” but we used to be better at overcoming our differences. We seem to have forgotten how to do that.
The attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021 was reprehensible. The people who participated in it either were misled by lies about the outcome of the 2020 election or decided that violence was justified to achieve their political aims regardless of who won (or both). For a brief moment after the attack, Democrats and Republicans in Congress joined in condemning it. Since then, Republican senators and representatives have reversed course and expressed their desire to “move on,” as if doing so doesn’t create its own grave risks.
The work of the January 6th Committee in the House of Representatives is necessary to reveal the causes of the insurrection and the lessons to be learned to avoid similar despicable attacks on our institutions. That work is necessary, but not sufficient. Unless it is combined with a reawakening of bipartisanship, America will lose the greatness it has long enjoyed.
We not only have become polarized, but we remain on a path to increased polarization. Extremism breeds extremism. Newton’s third law of motion applies to politics as well: where there is an action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. The Republican Party’s drift to the right is in no small way responsible for the Democratic Party’s drift to the left, and vice versa. As the movement of each side away from the other accelerates, the middle, where the work of democracy thrives, loses its sway.
Political and legal action against the perpetrators of the insurrection must be brought to bear, but unless such action is accompanied by a commitment from those on both ends of the political spectrum to listen to each other and seek in earnest to find common ground, it will fall short of saving us from the consequences of our basest instincts.
Those in politics who truly care about our country need to muster the courage to speak out against their own side’s unwillingness to compromise. The rest of us need to examine our consciences and ask what attitudes and behaviors within ourselves we need to change to bridge the chasm that divides us. Instead of always seeking to find fault in those with whom we disagree, we should recognize the goodness that is within them and appeal to that goodness to bring us closer together. And Americans who identify as liberals, conservatives, and moderates must work together to remove from power all who seek to divide rather than unite.
It’s that simple and that difficult. But if we love our country, failure is not an option.
As a "Boomer" and political observer as well as participant for these many decades, I can only see a violent conclusion to the present division. The party of Eisenhower was the last time R's had any ideas to move our nation forward. They would be called leftists now. Since then, the R mantra has been to gather more money and power to the detriment of those without power or influence. D's continue to try to advance policies by mostly playing within rules that are too constricting, therefore little gets done. We are one election away from autocracy that will lead to many resisting and a violent end game.
The fact that only 2 Republicans (Liz Cheney and her dad there to support her) attended the memorial last Jan. 6 says it all. I may not agree with their politics, but I agree with their standing up for what is right. Doesn't anyone else on that side of the aisle have a conscience?