Some years ago when I ran for office, I found to my surprise that many people, even those who participate in serious discussions and usually vote, don’t really understand basic terminology in politics.  Many educated and intelligent folk have a fuzzy notion of what it means to be conservative or liberal, right, left or in the middle.  The more uncertain they are, the more likely they just say they’re independent or undecided.  A majority finds it hard to distinguish a party platform from administration policy or political philosophy that lay behind at least some of it.  Few venture a guess at connections between faith and freedom; freedom and religion; freedom and capitalism; war and liberty; and more. 

An elderly gentleman once asked me how someone could be pro-life and pro-guns at the same time.  A little girl during a parade cried for “faith and freedom” like it were candy (she had apparently missed getting hers).  It’s okay though.  Many of those same people are experts in other fields, as well as good and conscientious people who work for a living, take care of their families, and pay taxes.  Not only that, but some of them will dabble so much or often in politics, that they will eventually master the art and mystery of answering stupid questions with sufficient political obfuscation to be thought well of.  (Everybody hates a politician, but everyone loves the statesman). 

Seriously most members of the Great American Public (GAP) are just looking for someone they can trust with the unfortunate details and associated headaches involved with politics.  But then, there’s the rub: it seems to be a hard thing to find someone these days both competent in terms of what you’re looking for, and also trustworthy.  Character anyone?  Rocky Balboa had character, but we might need a little more than that.  The congressman who hid 90,000 bucks of “cold cash” in his freezer may have been pretty smart, but he sure wasn’t honest.  Teddy Roosevelt used to joke that, “When the roll is called in the Senate, the Senators don’t know whether to respond ‘present’ or ‘not guilty.’”  A few successful businesspeople, doctors and soldiers are in politics but not very many and not nearly enough. 

What the GAP doesn’t realize is that it depends upon them to do the recruiting and to even apply for some of those positions that come open, even if it means on-the-job-training (OJT).  There’s simply no Human Resources (HR) department in the country for political office, and the established political parties are doing a lousy job.  The political class has shown itself to be imbecilic or criminal, and this is not a true reflection of who we are.  The Founders envisioned a filtration of talent to occur, such that, those who were elected to serve the public would be the best from amongst the public—i.e., a successful planter or businessperson, a respected lawyer or judge, an accomplished surveyor, writer, musician, scientist, plumber, whatever.  Today we seem to have left that field to charlatans and charity cases.  We have entrusted our present earnings and the wealth of Posterity on our watch, to profligate spenders and tax-addicted money hounds. 

Folks this needs to stop.  The future of our country and possibly the entire West depends upon it.  Oh, sorry.  You may need to be reminded of what the West is, since Western Civilization, a.k.a. “Civ” courses have been scrapped from the curricula in so many places.  So here’s a little lesson according to Professor Victor Davis Hanson, Distinguished Fellow in History at Hillsdale College.  By the West “we refer to the culture that originated in Greece, spread to Rome, permeated Northern Europe, was incorporated by the Anglo-Saxon tradition, spread through British expansionism, and is associated today primarily with Europe, the United States, and the former commonwealth countries of Britain—as well as, to some extent, nations like Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea, which have incorporated some Western ideas.”  What are Western ideas?  “They include a commitment to constitutional or limited government, freedom of the individual, religious freedom in a sense that precludes religious tyranny, respect for property rights, faith in free markets, and an openness to rationalism or to the explanation of natural phenomena through reason.” 

The United States is today the chief agent and most successful example of Western Civilization ever, but also nearly the only one left.  It is who we are.  I say again, the future of our country and possibly the entire West depends upon our being able to change out this awful political class and to fill political vacancies (which may describe most incumbents) with competent men and women of character, who will come out from among the GAP to fill the gap or proverbial breach in the dike.  Every election is in fact a new job announcement, and the job is open to anyone who wants to apply.  This is where an allusion to Rocky and to boxing may be the right one.  Campaigning isn’t the typical job interview, and politics isn’t for the faint of heart, but neither is scuba diving, driving trucks, or following the south end of northbound cattle.  Something about the south end of northbound cattle reminds me of most politicians, but I yield to the distinguished Gentleman or Gentlewoman of the West.  Thank you for making the trip. 

_____________________

Wesley Allen Riddle is a retired military officer with degrees and honors from West Point and Oxford.  Widely published in the academic and opinion press, he ran for U.S. Congress (TX-District 31) in the 2004 Republican Primary.  Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . 

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