I was struck by two recent news articles. As is often the case I was motivated to write a post exploring the issues presented.
The issues are controversial, and that raised a red flag. I’ve mentioned before my ill-fated visit to Indianapolis to visit my (then) good friend Phil. Rush Limbaugh’s book See, I Told You So was sitting on his coffee table, and I had a good and hearty laugh, mocking Mr. Limbaugh. It turned out I was also mocking Phil.
Phil doesn’t talk to me anymore. I’ve tried calling, to no avail. I understand his hurt feelings, and the loss of his friendship convinced me to show more respect for the views of others. Hurting someone’s feelings for any reason is a significant event.
At the same time, my goal in writing, in posts such as this, is to do more than simply reiterate news of the day. You can do that on your own. I’m even cautious about telling you my opinion or giving my advice. Too often, what I would end up with is a diatribe. You don’t need that either.
I’ve settled on perspective. I’ve been around, held a bunch of different jobs in a bunch of places, raised kids, had some trouble, held elected office. It’s up to me to find an interesting topic, and present the subject in an entertaining, and hopefully enlightening, way.
I want to be considerate of you, the reader. Many of you are lefties like me, but many of you are conservative. I know that some of you are people of strong faith, something rather foreign to me. When I write I keep a specific few of you in mind, asking myself how you will feel when you read—I don’t want anyone to feel they are completely ignored, or disrespected.
I did that with Phil, and I don’t want to do it again.
As for the articles I mentioned: one dealt with the Jennifer Lawrence, the famous actress, who is interested in Afghanistan. She has teamed up with Malala Yousafzai to produce Bread & Roses, a documentary about the ongoing abuse of women in that country.
Ms. Yousafzai Malala knows what she’s talking about. She is a Pakistani female education activist and a 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17. She is the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history, the second Pakistani and the only Pashtun to receive a Nobel Prize. She came to our attention when, at 17 years old, she was shot by a Taliban gunman in Pakistan as she rode home on a bus after taking a test. (Malala.org)
I am familiar with the Afghan stories of vast landscapes, warlords that control small areas of an ungovernable country, takeover by the Taliban, routing of the Taliban, re-emergence of the Taliban, promises of fair treatment of females, and continued stories of isolation and abuse of women. I have read the credible reports of schooling for girls that was ended, prohibitions on women going out without a male chaperone, and harsh restrictions on any woman seeking to be trained and carry on a professional trade.
It seems to me Americans should be able to agree that the behavior of the Taliban is inconsistent with our values. America’s foreign policy statements are replete with commitments to free choice, self-representation, equality, education.
We have also, of course, been faced with failures to achieve our foreign policy goals. Afghanistan is a good example. There is, I am sure, lack of public support to re-enter that country, take down the Taliban, and institute educational and societal reforms. Our foreign policy goals run head-on into domestic politics.
Which takes me to the second article. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell is a Democrat, running for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Rick Scott, a Republican. There are a host of issues in the contest, but Ms. Mucarsel-Powell believes the controversy over abortion, and the political fallout from the recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe vs Wade, will propel her to victory.
How might I address this issue? My sense is that there are two warring camps, with a fair number of Americans in the middle. Because the Supreme Court has left the issue to the individual states, or to federal legislation, the eventual determination will be made in the coming elections. That is, it will run head-on into domestic politics.
That’s the way we do things here. Ms. Mucarsel-Powell doesn’t state the issue simply in terms of abortion, of course. She points to her support for “maternal and reproductive health care.” She points, I am sure, to other places on the globe where women are allotted a narrow role in the society, and where girls are brought up to know their place, see, e.g., Afghanistan, promising she doesn’t want that to happen here.
Rick Scott, the current Senator, reads the political tea leaves as well, and recognizes that he needs votes from the middle to win. He, too, can be expected to moderate his statements. He’s been in office so he has a record that can be closely reviewed. He is also affected by the ongoing debate and views of his party. See, in this regard, today’s editorial by Mike Pence, former Vice President, bemoaning the tepid behavior of the likely Republican presidential candidate.
My review of recent polls (Gallup, Pew, AP/NORC) tells me that the priorities of the American public are not surprising at all: immigration, the economy, crime/violence, and health care. Foreign policy is showing up as an increasing concern, as is climate change. You can be assured candidates pay attention to polling, but they also must consider that many polls are measuring the feelings and opinions of people that will not be voting.
Likelihood of voting: it is this factor that helps to give abortion such a prominent role in our public discussion. Motivating the members of the warring camps to get out and vote is, of course, essential, but it is also a predictable exercise. Motivating those in the middle, with their concerns about immigration and health care costs, is a greater challenge.
From my left-leaning perspective, I see Ms. Mucarsel-Powell’s likely emphasis on women’s health care, and control over their own bodies, as something that would attract not only the zealots for pro-choice, but a bunch of people in the middle. At the same time, I recognize it lacks the moral focus that motivates Mr. Pence. His perspective is that the “63 million unborn Americans” deserve a voice. It’s unlikely such differing views will be resolved in the campaign. Indeed, that is probably not the purpose of the campaign anyway.
Our political system, and our civil peace, depend on softening the edges of debate, and finding acceptable compromise. Framing the issue is important. While we are enduring a period of so-called absolutes, our history tells us we are headed for a reasonable compromise. The resolution will leave some dissatisfied but will provide enough solace to ease the conscience.
We’ve done this compromise thing before, and we’re pretty good at it. My bet is that a bunch of us will end up unhappy, and some others might feel they’ve prevailed, but we’ll find a way to carry on, get along with each other, and somehow continue working on building a fair and decent society. Don’t burn the bridge, as they say, you might need it someday to get back across.
I’m not typically an optimist, but I’ve seen the American people, time and time again, find a positive path forward. I’m betting we’ll do it again.
I appreciate your story about your buddy Phil. In my opinion that example highlights the true problem we face as a society. When someone can’t take a harmless joke, it truly shows the negative effects of the echo chambers Americans trap themselves in. Whether left or right, I find it quite comical that citizens can subscribe wholesale to all views of their respective sides. This tells me that no one actually thinks about the issues, but they instead memorize what the ‘correct’ perspective is based on their religion, oops I mean the political party they subscribe to. One thing these elected officials always seem to agree on are things like war and economic strategies, both of which typically don’t benefit the common person. What does this mean? To me it means we need to take a serious look at promoting a second or possibly even a third party to represent the people who are supposed to be the ones in charge. This single party demopublican system most voters support will keep us on this hamster wheel so long as we let them. It’s high time to stop being parrots and to start embracing our abilities to think as humans.
P.S. How can you not make fun of Rush Limbaugh?