Being Peaceful in the Swirl of a Political Campaign

Political Campaign Miasma

One month left to go in the American Presidential race and I wish it were over. I am not a happy camper.

 I inquired into my unhappiness and this is what I saw: I had decided that something is wrong with the candidates, wrong with the way we do politics, and hell, something is wrong with us in the U.S. period. I saw that I was frightened, anxious and miserable.   I am worried that McCain and Palin will be elected and that together they will replay the Bush years –or worse. I fear Sarah Palin is unprepared for the job of Vice-President. I am pained that Obama does not have the moxie and the heart that I had hoped for.

Blaming and Make Wrong Robs Us of Peace

I have lost inner peace. Why? Because I am making all of it wrong. I am making our mode of doing politics and running elections wrong. Notice that in making the candidates wrong there is no room for any of them to simply appear as vulnerable human beings, full of possibility, potential and error–i.e. like you and me. I notice that when I give up blaming I am suddenly at peace.                                                               

If Not Blame, Then What?

If there is nothing wrong here and no one is to be blamed or faulted, what then? A new question arises: What is missing in our election system in the U.S., the presence of which would make a difference? The issue now becomes one not of fault, but of workability, which then leads to creativity and new thinking.

New Thinking and Workability

What is missing in our politics which, if we put it in, would make our politics more effective, engaging and dare I even say it–more fun? For a start we could ask, how do they do it in the rest of the world? The U.S. is the only country in the world that has a 23 month campaign to elect its national leaders. Other questions flow from this one:

• Why do U.S. political campaigns go on for so long?
• How could money be taken out of politics?
• How could we get more creative ideas from the candidates?
• Why are we so invested in presidential campaigns? What needs do they meet?
• How could we empower ourselves to work on society’s problems instead of leaving it all up to government’s leaders?
• Could we shift from a complaining/blaming mode of politics to one of partnership and direct engagement in governance?

 How Can We Craft a Politics that Really Works?

I would like to hear from our readers in other countries around the world about how elections are run and how politics is done in their counties. What works and doesn’t work in your country?  What are your visions for how a large country, like the U.S., which is mobile, diverse and multi-cultural, can work together to create solutions that work for the vast majority?  How can people learn to sit down and work together, even though they don’t agree with each other, and arrive at workable solutions?

Related post: Creating a Workable Politics

Readers will notice that we, at Peace By Design, are far more interested in questions, than we are in answers.  Answers have a way of stopping the exploration; questions always lead to the new and the unexpected. Bring on the questions! We love to hear from you.

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