« We'd go to India, if we could get the right visa | Main | A note about the gallery »
June 17, 2005
The lost art of conversation
I once heard a critic, stretching to find something nice to say about the United Nations, say that they really know how to organize a conference. He said it seriously, but I think he still missed the broader point that conferences are important. Conferences, after all, are one of the few places where people get together just to talk and (more importantly) listen.
And so when I see things like this article on the House proposing to withhold half of our UN dues, it helps to solidify a thought that's been forming in my head for some time now. The Republicans in power hate to have a conversation.
I'll note, in the interest of fairness, that the Bush administration strongly opposes the bill. Nevertheless, the vote was fairly strictly along party lines. Given, as well, the tendency of the White House to act unilaterally on a host of issues (in particular, ones with international consequences), I can only assume that this bill is symptomatic of some disconnect in the way the two parties do business.
This disconnect comes, I believe, from the fundamental difference between a democracy and a republic. In a democracy, where every vote can be measured directly against the outcome of that vote, conversations are important. If I want something to happen, I need to convince other people to vote for that thing. So if I want people to support the UN, for example, I need to convince them that the UN is a good thing and. In a republic, though, we elect representatives to make the decisions for us. So I don't need to convince you that I'm right on every issue. I just need to convince you to vote for my guy.
It's a truism to say that policy wonks love to talk policy. That's great, but it only matters on day two. On day one it comes down to the person, and that, for whatever reason, is the conversation we're afraid to have.
For example, as an issue, supporting the UN gets completely lost in the crowd when election time comes. So if the UN is what matters most to me, I need to find the candidate a will support it and the find some other reason for everyone else to vote for them. That's really what it comes down to and that, fundamentally, is why Kerry lost last November.
Democrats are getting better, though. The fight over the John Bolton nomination started because of policy, but it would have gone nowhere if Bolton hadn't also been a complete ass. When the subject turned to Bolton chasing women through hotel hallways and screaming and yelling at the top of his lungs the conversation turned trashy, for sure, but it also brought it up to page one. I don't like it. I try not to participate in it. But like it or not we don't live in a country where conversation is king. If liberals want to enact liberal policies, they need to get back in the habit of talking about people first, policy second.
Posted by matt at June 17, 2005 06:39 PM