To be in the middle, the so-called “moderate,” the political “edges” must first be clearly defined. Indeed, very little is truly defined in the American political scene because America is primarily the land of political pragmatism. “Pragmatism” is not overly concerned with “left” or “right”; it is concerned with what works. The real question shouldn’t be about “moderates,” but rather what works; why it works; how to make it better; and what can make it worse? Welcome to the American mainstream mind.
Why are George Bush and Hillary Clinton so vilified and hated by so many? Is it because they are perceived as being too ideological by the pragmatic collective mind of American voters? No. It is because the ideologies of both the left and the right perceive the true nature of the conflict between one another, and are doing everything they know to do to demonize George and Hillary as representatives of what they hate. Currently, the left is much more effective in their public poisoning of Mr. Bush because the left largely controls the media. Fox News and conservative talk-radio are gaining on the right however, and Hillary is getting ready to take her “fair share” once her candidacy is secured. As usual, the mainstream American pragmatics are looking at both the economy and our collective American security as the real indicators of who to vote for in November.
All the current candidates for their party’s nominations are generally behaving as well-coached “moderates,” which really means American-styled pragmatics. The issues are largely discussed in terms of what is working or not working rather than by which specific major principles should or should not guide this nation in the long run. The “American people” are constantly accredited with “knowing what is right” which is a simple populist language strategy to call us all back to our pragmatic roots.
While all this pragmatism is rarely discussed clearly in public, in some ways it acts as a short-term safety mechanism. Sometime in the not too distant future, our current policies, in multiple areas, finally will force us into a truly non-pragmatic national debate on basic values and long-term strategies. Until then, we will “moderately” wobble our way down the slippery slopes of American pragmatism, and while that may be the bottom line, it is not a real solution to our many problems. Indeed, it is not even a beginning to their solution.
Principle Based Evaluation: Since all law is “religious” because by its very nature it defines good and evil, justice and injustice, and the consequences of disobedience, it will be impossible for the United States to move past its current pragmatic stalemate without an open dialogue over the moral issues underlying our decision making models.
For more information on the author, Dennis Peacocke, go to: http://www.gostrategic.org/
