A House Divided

I have no head for politics. I want to understand the issues - I really do! - and I want to vote wisely. I want to contribute to the well-being of my city, state, and country. What turns me off is the nature of the rhetoric right now and the "Us VS Them" attitude I see being promoted by pundits on both sides. Adding religion into the mix definitely doesn't help; it's been the most divisive force in human history, and we're already struggling to compensate for the growing division between the parties. Year after year, I become more disgusted with American politics and politicians. The solution to many of our nation's problems isn't more government, but it's not less government either; it's smarter government.

While I hold no special place in my heart for the kind of people who are able to hedge their own ideals so thoroughly as to function as spokesmen for any one party's obscene bias, we are occasionally reminded that these politicians are humans, too, and that they are every bit as susceptible to the violent prejudices of gun-toting headcases as we are - doubtless moreso because of their publicity. As I am sure most are aware by now, congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona was wounded in what may have been an assassination attempt while she was speaking to constituents in a convenience store parking lot. I've been following this story pretty passively, catching bits of it here and there. It's a terrible thing, of course, but it's been interesting seeing how our nation is responding. There's been a great outpouring of care and concern, but there's also been a lot of pretty nefarious insinuation going on. I won't comment about Sarah Palin and the bull's-eye graphics, nor will I opine about Giffords's policies. I don't want to make this about any one person's politics, and that's the point of this blog.

Gabrielle's shooting has shown us, if nothing else has, that partisan bickering can disappear when we show genuine concern for the suffering of another human being. We can disagree without slander, speak out without malice, compete without enmity. We can - we can - remember that government is about people, not about advancing one set of ideals into the halls of power. That kind of mindset is what creates people like Gabrielle's shooter. It at least inspires them. Move the right forward, move the left against them. Killing for ideals. How far are we from that, really? Giffords survived this attack, but she was one of 20 people who were shot. Six are dead, including a child. Isn't it a little bit galling to think that there are people who are turning this into a political issue?

"My religion is peace," said the Dalai Lama. A government that does not foster peace cannot function, no matter what its policies or religious leanings may be. Jared Lee Loughner represents a large faction of people who are every bit as eager for peace as the Dalai Lama, but for their version of peace to be achieved, certain people have to die. The more divided we become, the more ground individuals like him gain, even if they remain on the fringes. As we hold out hope for Gabrielle and as we grieve for those who died in Loughner's shooting spree, may we take away the lesson that a house divided against itself cannot stand - that we would do well to spend more time at each other's ears than at each other's throats.