The Enemy of My Enemy

In a response to my last post, Craig, the man with whom I am duty bound to disagree about everything!, expressed reservations that voting for Democrats might help our current malaise in governance.  Being slightly lazy, I recognized the opportunity for a post, so here goes.  Craig wrote:

So, as small-government types, we're just supposed to cast our lot with the big-government types? Sounds like cutting off your nose to spite your face to me.

Dick Morris said it best the other night with regards to the whole Foley thing, and I'm paraphrasing here: It's not an R thing, it's not a D thing, it's a congress thing. People in power will always pull crap like this. Look around, and you'll find this thing going on in almost organization that has the two volatile ingredients: young people with stars in their eyes, and older people with power over them.

Now, considering that I urged a change to the Democrats in Congress in that post, it's pretty clear where Craig is coming from.  Why should he, a man that respects the stated values of what the Republicans could be, vote for those who don't agree with those values (Democrats)?  That's a damn fair question, so allow me to retort:

Craig, it has been said that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.  Over the last half century, the Republican party has turned that into a mantra for success, hence the focus on single issue voting.  In most cases, it's rarely or only circumstantially true, but in this case it is, and I have a pretty clear idea why.

The Democrats are seen through the filter of history as being the party of tax and spend, in the interests of expanding government.  The Republicans have tried to be the party of small government and values and security ... and have proven themselves failures on all counts.  Lies all around.  The Democrats appear to be liars, so people voted them out of power.  The Republicans obviously are liars, so people want to vote them out but fear the Democrats in control.  At this point, Dave Budge would have us raise our hands in despair and cry "Feh ... a pox on both their houses".  As pointless as I find that, I do somewhat agree with it as effective strategy.

See, Dave would have us reject the lies from both sides without considering the same lie that flows from both.  Both parties exist under the delusion that they are or are not in control.  A lot of our frustration, yours and mine Craig, is firmly grounded in the knowledge that they aren't in control ... we are, we the people.  So why on Earth aren't we exercising that control to put the lie to rest?  Many libertarians would have us look for an alternative party (not necessarily Dave; he tends to remain vague on who he would support, if not on what.)  The same problem remains, that the people serve a party, a collective will.

Not so very damn much.  Ultimately, the people will vote to serve their own needs and desires.  The constraints on those desires and provision for those needs is based solely on who we elect, not what.  That makes it near; that makes it personal.  Burns claims that he will provide, when in fact, he's screwed me over with a horrible debt and an erosion of my Constitutionally promised freedoms.  Tester says he can do better for me.  I don't know if he can, but if I waste time trying to wheedle out of him the admission that he will really screw me over, I tend to forget that Burns really is.

Here's my thing; I shouldn't give a crap whether Tester will or Burns is hosing me.  I should care about whether Tester will hose Burns.  I know, as established fact, that Burns is a screw-up in representing me.  He's forgotten something, however.  I'm a voter.  He works for me, not vice-versa.  My power is that I get to tell him to go home.  That's a pretty big power.

Now, we have a Congress that most of us don't trust and most of us don't like, all based on the idea that everyone of those assholes will lie to us and cheat us.  Screw 'em.  Their enemy ... my friend.  And when that friend proves himself faithless, I have another friend waiting in the wings.

Are the Democrats a solution to all problems, as Dave ridiculously seems to think I believe?  No.  But Tester solves one problem for me; Conrad Burns.  I don't agree with Tester on everything, but I know that he works for me.  And when he proves himself a feckless toady of special interest, I'll smack him down too.

We can say that the "system" is broken all we wish.  There are those ever eager to point out that we aren't getting all that we want and it's the other guy's fault.  Notice that they will always point to the broken system; liberal media, *LIES*, all politicians are corrupt, Faux News, lobbyists, money, whatever.  We'll blame everybody but ourselves.  But the one thing that we will agree on is that we've been outsmarted (except for libertarians who are *never* outsmarted).  The one thing that everybody seems to agree on is that the control lies elsewhere.  We want to believe that so badly that we reshape the founders into God-fearing Christians, even though most weren't.  We drool for it so much that we think we'll never vote for a party supported by Oliver Willis (admit it, wasn't that one of the dumbest damn things ever written?)  We really really have to believe that its the system and not us.

Bullshit.  We've abdicated our power and our responsibility.  It's time to take it back.  It isn't the system, it's us.  We have the control.  So, if we really believe that our elected officials are assholes, lets clarify who runs the show.  Joe Lieberman?  He's not a centrist icon; he's an arrogant prick who thinks he knows more than the electorate.  Gone.  Conrad Burns?  Look at that guy over there; he hasn't done a god damned thing.  We may look at the laundry list that we wish our officials to wash into beauty, but the power we have isn't to force them into our will.  The power we have is to play them into compliance.  The power we have is to get the folks who will serve us.

In this year, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.  I want my Congress back.  I want Habeas Corpus back.  I want a Congress where pages aren't sex objects for the rich and powerful, while others cover that disgusting lie.  I want representatives that recognize that the power belongs to us, not them.  You, Craig, pointed out that the powerful will always pull crap like that.  Not if they recognize where power comes from.  It truly comes from us.  The Republicans, by all admission, have neglected that.  It's time to punish them.  It's time to remind them who runs this show.  It's time to vote for Democrats.  And when they  serve themselves instead of us ... the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

In the comments to that last post, Jon, and how I adore him for his clarity, had a damned fine question to ask:

I watch the news and see other countries rioting in the streets when their politicians turn out to be dumb, corrupt perverts.

How come we never riot here? I think our Congress is like this because we make it seem as if we really don't care.

Yes, we do.  We let them get away with anything.  This stops now.  In simplest terms, we cast our lot with those we disagree with on one thing because we need them to agree on the thing:  This our country and we won't give it up without a fight.

Comments

[Dave Budge]

Are the Democrats a solution to all problems, as Dave ridiculously seems to think I believe?

Quick, someone give me the Heimlich Maneuver. I'm choaking on a pile of words that have been stuffed in my mouth.

[Wulfgar]

Dave, in your post that I linked, you painted with a pretty damned big brush. Do you want me to quote you?

[Craig]

Joe Lieberman? He's not a centrist icon; he's an arrogant prick who thinks he knows more than the electorate. Gone.

Zogby says Joe is leading by 20 points. His people seem to want him in there. And it's the people who have the power, right?

See, there's the problem, right there, in spades. The Democrats don't want him in, and by extension, they figure the electorate doesn't.

Guess they're wrong, huh?

[Dave Budge]

Yes, please quote me and then show me where I mentioned A) You, in particular and B) ALL of your problems.

[Shane C. Mason]

Craig,

See, there's the problem, right there, in spades. The Democrats don't want him in, and by extension, they figure the electorate doesn't.

No, the democrats knew that they did not want him there in their name. If the republicans and some democrats want him there, that is up to them. The democrats of the state of Connecticut have had their say on him.

Wulfgar

Bullshit. We've abdicated our power and our responsibility. It's time to take it back. It isn't the system, it's us. We have the control. So, if we really believe that our elected officials are assholes, lets clarify who runs the show.

No, it's so true. This is the message that needs to be on each person's lips for the next 8 years.

[Jay Stevens]

Amen. If there are trough-feeding Dems too long at the teat of power, I think it's fair to take them down, too.

BTW, you think Budge is really quitting, or he just did it so his fans would call him a genius?

[Craig]

BTW, you think Budge is really quitting, or he just did it so his fans would call him a genius?

It's a phase.

We all go through it. I've gone through it about 5 times, myself. Heck, Rob just went through it recently.

I still don't get where you're coming from, Rob. You seem to be saying that anyone who is disenchanted with the Republicans should vote Democrat, but I still say it's cutting off your nose to spite your face.

I'm kicking around the idea of writing in someone who I know will represent my interests, to a "T."

Me.

[Mark T]

"Laugh about it, shout about it when you've got to choose, every way you look at it you lose."

Words written in 1967. How little things have changed.

[Wulfgar]

Dave, it's a simple syllogism. You contend that Democrats believe that our party can steer the government towards redemption. That's two unfounded generalizations and at least two enormous assumptions. I am a Democrat. Therefore, I believe ...

Believe me, I'm every bit as much a curmudgeon as yourself. And I'm self aware enough to know that we are the people most desperately in need of being poked with a stick every now and then, just so's that we lighten the hell up.

I am a Democrat, and I guarentee that I revile 'my' party as much if not more than yourself, or at least what my party has become. I also see the Dems having the power to pull back from the brink, but it will be people like me being pissed off that accomplishes that ... not a party afilliation.
And for the record, I'm still going through that phase that Craig mentions, for surprisingly similar reasons that you post, Dave. But you are dead wrong about one thing. There are people who visit your site to gather food for thought; I'm the living proof. But there's no onus on me as a reader to agree, or to comment or even to let you know that I'm reading. So all you gotta ask yourself is whether your blogging to educate your readers, or doing it for your own reasons. If it's the former, I'll give you some terrific free advice: give it up now.

Craig, I'm not saying that one should vote for Democrats just because one is disenchanted with Republicans. If you're training a dog, you can get results by lavishing attention on a better behaved dog. If you have employees that are robbing you blind, you fire them and get ones that won't. Party has very little to do with it. I'm talking about taking back a Congress that's gone rogue, here.

Your issues and my issues are pointless to even discuss anymore. They don't matter to Congress that only wants personal gain and individual satisfaction. They won't serve you and they won't serve me ... so fire the bastards.

I guess that ultimately, it boils down to this for me: I will vote for a candidate who shows a modicum of courage and integrity that disagrees with me on most things over the whore who tells me what I want to hear just to maintain power, control and that juicy income. It's the only way, and I do mean only, that we are going to get our country back.

[Wulfgar]

And just so's that we're clear, yes, I do have deal-breakers on issues. The most wonderfully integral person in the universe will not get my vote if they believe that the US ws founded on Christianity and the Ten Commandments. I don't give a damn how much integrity they have. Stupid is a deal breaker for me.

That's why I can't vote for Jones. Panicing enough over Y2K to drink silver ... not smart.

[Dave Budge]

Wulfgar, even assuming I'm wrong in my assumption about Democrats (although I'm not), there is a deep gulf in meaning between "that theirs is the party to steer the mammoth ship of government into the port of redemption" and "Are the Democrats a solution to all problems, as Dave ridiculously seems to think I believe?"

I can't see how you got from point A to point B without putting words in my mouth. Redemption and solution have entirely different meanings.

Secondly, let me stipulate for the moment that you revile your party. Let's also stipulate that most Democrats do not. Quite the contrary, they embrace it. In your argument, you say the same power exists to vote to put Republicans out regardless of your party affiliation. If you revile the party, then why are you a member? As you said, you can accomplish what you want without party affiliation.

Last, let me note that, when I wrote the post, you were not the subject upon which I was making the observation (assumption.)

[Richard Neva]

Fuck voting and let's start the revolution!