[Dialogue] Being a Republican

[george]

I think I would be more impressed by those who dislike the Being a  
Republican piece, if there were actually rebuttals to the points  
made.  That would be interesting.  Of course you don't need pieces on  
Democrats, the mere mention of the name can make you chuckle.  Truth  
is, U.S. politics is much like the old cowboy who keeps pulling the  
trigger trying to get his pistol our of his holster.  I just got back  
from making some speeches in Florida and several of the folk there  
still have not been able to get their houses repaired or insurance  
settlements from two hurricanes ago, let alone what's going on in the  
Gulf Coast (Carlos can fill us in).  No one is able to control any  
border.  The U.S. has the largest divide between rich and poor of any  
developed nation, and despite all the "good news" about the economy  
our local Food Banks are over run (and they check the validity of  
people coming in).  If you read the legislation put out that is voted  
on; it would take a fortune teller to guess at what it means.  While  
the Federal government is getting bigger the tax burden in the US is  
being shifted to State and Local, and what we are doing overseas is  
insane from anyone's point of view.  You are in a war you can't win  
or get out of, and you are piling up debt that no one can see over,  
plus killing people right and left.  86% of the people in the U.S.  
approve a woman's right to her own body (have for some time), but our  
politicians can't seem to get over it.  The middle class is hunkered  
down hoping they'll have a retirement fund they've already paid for.   
And we are caught up debating evolution and the literal truth of the  
Bible.  Now if you can make sense of any of that please write an  
article.

A long time ago we said that Democracy had won the day, and it had.   
The worst Dictator wants to portray himself as democratically  
elected, but as we said democracy is transisting from representative  
to participative.  That's not a quick or easy process.  There are  
really no established forms for participative democracy as there are  
for representative forms.  And the representative forms are firmly  
entrenched in institutions -just try and change anything in any  
institution simply using participative methods.  Only if you can put  
enough pressure on the representative forms can the change happen.   
Right now the representative forms everywhere, pick any country, are  
under stress.  They don't work like they used to, and nobody really  
believes you can elect someone so smart that they can come up with  
the right answers, ways, etc. for the rest of us.  In fact, it's no  
secret, that money does it (e.g. Cunningham in California).  It makes  
folks feel powerless.  Do something!  Like what?  Quietly, I think  
our methods and those who teach them are doing something.  I keep  
running into people who use them and are learning how to make  
decisions by consensus and figure out contradictions, etc.

A really good read is in the March 14 issue of Forbes.  It's an  
article by Lee Kwan Yee, former prime minister of Singapore that  
points to some of the issues of the day with a little history.
Also his Forbes article in Dec. 26, 2005 on Terrorism  http:// 
www.forbes.com/opinions/free_forbes/2005/1226/031.html

george holcombe