Sarah Mark
9-2-15
"Are backroom deals necessary for a productive democracy?"
Many people believe that corruption and backroom deals are the worst things to occur in American government. Many people say our government is a joke, that it is a whole bunch of men who pretend to be running our country. Many people think that our Founding Fathers are rolling in their graves if they saw what our government has come to. Many people think the government isn’t doing its job. Many people think the government is just for show and that there is a secret underground facility running our country. When I say ‘many people’, I mean me. For a long time, I thought our government was pure hogwash. Lately, my opinions have changed a tad. Do I know how the government plays a role in our country? Yes. Do I see the point of the law? Yes. Do I think that the government is full of corruption? Still, yes. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily.
When a person thinks of corruption, they immediately flinch. Their mind flashes to the Gilded Age; choked full of backroom deals. However, a person cannot doubt that those backroom deals, among many others, have made this country what it is today. What if I told you that backroom deals could maybe be a good thing? Does this sound impossible? Not to me.
Now, picture Democracy. Laws being passed through many systems that deem it good or bad. Think about how many systems anything has to go through in this country. It takes time. A lot of time. It doesn’t matter if a law is trying to be passed or a permit is trying to be obtained; it is slow. To quote a previous history teacher, ‘democracy is slow’. The word ‘democracy’ and bureaucracy are forever linked in my mind.
Now picture backroom deals. A person might see a myriad of old men with beer bellies in pinstriped suits with cigars in a small room in the back of an old restaurant filled with smoke and a table covered in stacks of dollar bills.
Democracy and backroom deals seem kind of opposite. But they have more in common than dudes sitting around in nice suits discussing the future. They both have structure. They both have rules. They both involve the cooperation of others. They both require people who are dedicated; no matter what their motives are. And, lastly, they both set things into motion for our country.
Explaining the american government is so complicated and yet so simple. It is a system within a system, and on and on and on. Call it what you want, a death castle, a hog pit, a sophisticated hierarchy, a mind control facility, a secret club; but you cannot doubt its place in our society. It may be one of the few reasons our country is still standing today.
Long story short, the government is complicated. It takes months and years for anything to get approved, let alone put anything into motion. Getting a whole bunch of people to agree that something is or isn’t okay is a long and banal process. How are we supposed to progress as a country when we can’t get anything done, you ask? Political machines, that’s how. They are best at pushing things through that would otherwise be rejected by our government. Maybe the government is just for show and political machines is where things really happen. Even if the idea of political machines and corruption is frightening, at least its something; a tangible thing to invest hope. If that’s what it takes to get things done, then that's what it takes.
Do we want all political machines and no formal government? No. Do we want all formal government and no political machines? No. We need to find a balance. But first we need political machines that aren’t too extreme. We don't want the black heart of corruption running our country. But we could use a touch of that darkness to our advantage. It happens all the time, we just don’t know about it. So, if corruption is unavoidable and our government is in trouble and it’s already happening, why the hell not?
9-2-15
"Are backroom deals necessary for a productive democracy?"
Many people believe that corruption and backroom deals are the worst things to occur in American government. Many people say our government is a joke, that it is a whole bunch of men who pretend to be running our country. Many people think that our Founding Fathers are rolling in their graves if they saw what our government has come to. Many people think the government isn’t doing its job. Many people think the government is just for show and that there is a secret underground facility running our country. When I say ‘many people’, I mean me. For a long time, I thought our government was pure hogwash. Lately, my opinions have changed a tad. Do I know how the government plays a role in our country? Yes. Do I see the point of the law? Yes. Do I think that the government is full of corruption? Still, yes. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily.
When a person thinks of corruption, they immediately flinch. Their mind flashes to the Gilded Age; choked full of backroom deals. However, a person cannot doubt that those backroom deals, among many others, have made this country what it is today. What if I told you that backroom deals could maybe be a good thing? Does this sound impossible? Not to me.
Now, picture Democracy. Laws being passed through many systems that deem it good or bad. Think about how many systems anything has to go through in this country. It takes time. A lot of time. It doesn’t matter if a law is trying to be passed or a permit is trying to be obtained; it is slow. To quote a previous history teacher, ‘democracy is slow’. The word ‘democracy’ and bureaucracy are forever linked in my mind.
Now picture backroom deals. A person might see a myriad of old men with beer bellies in pinstriped suits with cigars in a small room in the back of an old restaurant filled with smoke and a table covered in stacks of dollar bills.
Democracy and backroom deals seem kind of opposite. But they have more in common than dudes sitting around in nice suits discussing the future. They both have structure. They both have rules. They both involve the cooperation of others. They both require people who are dedicated; no matter what their motives are. And, lastly, they both set things into motion for our country.
Explaining the american government is so complicated and yet so simple. It is a system within a system, and on and on and on. Call it what you want, a death castle, a hog pit, a sophisticated hierarchy, a mind control facility, a secret club; but you cannot doubt its place in our society. It may be one of the few reasons our country is still standing today.
Long story short, the government is complicated. It takes months and years for anything to get approved, let alone put anything into motion. Getting a whole bunch of people to agree that something is or isn’t okay is a long and banal process. How are we supposed to progress as a country when we can’t get anything done, you ask? Political machines, that’s how. They are best at pushing things through that would otherwise be rejected by our government. Maybe the government is just for show and political machines is where things really happen. Even if the idea of political machines and corruption is frightening, at least its something; a tangible thing to invest hope. If that’s what it takes to get things done, then that's what it takes.
Do we want all political machines and no formal government? No. Do we want all formal government and no political machines? No. We need to find a balance. But first we need political machines that aren’t too extreme. We don't want the black heart of corruption running our country. But we could use a touch of that darkness to our advantage. It happens all the time, we just don’t know about it. So, if corruption is unavoidable and our government is in trouble and it’s already happening, why the hell not?