Dad, are all Democrats fools?
Of course, all those who take a position opposed to mine are fools.
Seriously, Dad, I’ve been watching the confirmation hearings concerning Neil Gorsuch and I don’t know what the Democrats are up to. Gorsuch is an outstanding judge. He was approved unanimously by the previous Senate for his current position. It is hard to believe he has deteriorated so badly that a Republican Senate would change its mind, so why are the Democrats trying so hard? They are digging deep wherever they can, to cast as many aspersions as they can muster and still even with the threats of filibuster cannot realistically expect to defeat the nomination. Why so much energy expended for a lost cause?
To return to your first question, Democrats are human. They are not logical constructs of action designed to follow rigid patterns when confronted with similar circumstances. They are human, meaning emotional. They cannot stomach the defeat of Hillary Clinton. After all, the election was honestly bought and paid for and still she lost. They must rectify the scene, bring justice to bear, and have events line up properly. No cause is lost. Their goals will prevail because of the high idealism that encase them. Further, to add a detail that is often overlooked, college preparatory classes in our junior and senior high schools, not to mention actual colleges, are sometimes filled with more, bare-faced snobbery than any other comparable institution.
Yes, Dad, that’s very true. You have to have something, even if only to maintain your balance. The family name is best, of course but even your family auto has a certain rarity that can’t be duplicated. So even – or maybe especially – Democrats – have that hidden attractiveness that enables them to cope with today’s world. And their defeats will continue as long as they act the way they do.
And what would you suggest?
Reality, Dad.
Democrats have always had a problem with reality. Look at the Affordable Health Care Act, the nuclear agreement with Iran; both would have been immeasurably improved if the authors had taken some measure of reality into their calculations. One could even cite these two problems, the inability to recognize concrete obstacles when they appear and the unwillingness to formulate methods of combating them.
The first one hundred days may not have many victories in it but there is one undeniable fact, Trump won the big election, the presidential election, and both houses of Congress also. He is off to as good a start as any president in recent years, but the future will be rocky. The Democrats have lost any hope, if they ever had any, of working to establish a successful administration. But if the administration fails, a good part of the blame will fall on the stubborn and resourceful Democratic minority. A successful administration will enable the government to remedy some of the budget failures that are bound to occur, and will be of sufficient credit for all members of Congress, Republican and Democratic alike. A quarreling, divisive Congress is not only bad for the nation, but will harm both political parties. The election of 2020 may show us pockets of voter strength and areas of concern we were unaware of.
What about the witches brew of Palestine? Will there be chaos or destruction?
Neither one, I expect. The horrifying long hours of negotiations that John Kerry thought appropriate have proven through solicitous overuse their thorough inadequacy to reach any sort of agreement. To ask a simple question, if one set of negotiators refuses to sit down and talk to the other side, how can you have successful negotiations? There is a chance, however, so slight that it could bring laughter to a serious discussion of fossil fuels; that involuntary progress towards peace might be made through the convolutions of the U.S. dollar. Oceans of natural gas have been found in the Mediterranean waters of Israel and Cyprus, and are now being mostly exploited by Israel, with sales to Jordan and a Palestinian utility. Within two years, exploitation will be much greater and we can expect greater deals. It is just possible that at that time a young Palestinian would prefer working in a neighborhood utility in a full time job rather than as a part time bodyguard for some local politician.
One thing leads to another. The establishment of a utility or factory leads to the creation of shops and other retail devices. From these small beginning towns emerge and the need for a law fairly governing the entire population becomes paramount. Adequate law is necessary for adequate commerce. Without that law, commerce cannot exist, full employment will be a thing of the past, and the thin fabric of civilization that protects our cities will continue its dissolution.
