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	September 7, 2004

THE REAL ISSUES, AND WHY NO ONE TALKS ABOUT THEM As my regular readers know, this weblog is just a means to an end. The 'end' is a number of things: Getting people aware of and knowledgeable about and energized about the really important issues, not the ones they're spoon-fed by the pandering media; and exploring, and discussing out loud, and then acting on real solutions to those issues. These issues are all complex, and people appreciate that they are complex, which is why it's so infuriating to watch the candidates, the pollsters and the media attempt to reduce them to absurdly simple sound-bites and either/or decisions. Just to take one example: I'm convinced that a key solution to inequality in our society is teaching people how to establish their own small businesses. What 'issue' does that fall under: Employment, Education or Poverty? All of the issues are to some extent interrelated, and pigeon-holing voters' and candidates' positions on these issues is not only impossible, it impedes people from thinking holistically about these issues. What I find particularly outrageous is that pollsters very rarely even ask voters what they think are the important issues to be addressed, nor do they separate issues that can (or should) reasonably addressed by political bodies from those that need to be addressed by every one of us, as responsible citizens and individuals. This suggests, not so subtly, that we as citizens and consumers have no responsibility for dealing with issues, and that political actions are the solution to everything. And on those rare occasions when voters are asked (rather than told) what the major issues are, they are forced to pick from a pre-selected, and horribly biased, list of issues that the major parties have chosen for them. Here is an alphabetical list of all 43 issues that, from what I can find, the candidates in the upcoming US election have been asked for, or have expressed, an opinion on. In the 2004 polls I can find, the 28 in red italics have not been included in any lists of 'important issues' that people have been asked to choose the 'one most important' from: Mostly Political Issues: Campaign Finance Reform Civil Rights & Freedoms Defense Spending/Military Policy Foreign Policy: Middle East Foreign Policy: Rest of the World Gerrymandering Lobbying Separation of Church and State Term Limits Terrorism Mostly Economic Issues: Corporate Power & Regulation Deficits Fiscal & Monetary Policy Free Trade & Globalization Taxes: Flat vs Progressive Taxes: Overall Level Mostly Social & Educational Issues: Abortion Crime: Prevention Crime: Punishment Conservation: Drilling, Logging, Mining Policy Conservation: Programs & Incentives Education: Control & Funding Education: Curriculum Education: School Prayer Education: Sex Education Education: Vouchers Environmental Protection Global Warming Gun Control Health Care: Accessibility & Equality Health Care: Public vs Private Illegal Drug Policy Immigration Policy Overpopulation & Family Planning Policy Poverty Same-Sex Marriage Mostly Business & Technology Issues: Labour Union Policy Minimum Wage/Wage Gap Oil Shortages and Prices R&D/Innovation Funding & Support Self-Employment Options Stem Cell Research Unemployment Notice that the 15 non-italicized 'options' that pollsters give you to choose from as 'most important' issues are heavily biased towards (a) moral issues, and (b) issues with few options and little complexity. In fact, the 'selection' of these 15 issues makes the job easy for the pollsters, the media, the two main parties and dumbed-down voters, because: The positions of the two main parties on the 5 identified political and economic issues are virtually indistinguishable, The positions of the two main parties on the 10 identified social and educational and business issues are diametrically opposed, 'classical' liberal and conservative positions: Republicans Democrats Abortion opposed matter of choice Punishment of Crime stricter, more prisons, 2 strikes more focus on prevention School Prayer support opposed Sex Education opposed, kids should abstain support Vouchers support opposed Gun Control opposed support Health Care Accessibility basics for all, 2-tier for rest universal and equal Same-Sex Marriage opposed support Stem-Cell Research opposed support Unemployment 'the market' will fix it help you get back on your feet For the most part, a 'moderate' position on these 10 issues has been so well entrenched by previous lawmakers and by the courts that there is very little chance of any real change in laws in these areas, so both sides can posture safely to their constituencies knowing they'll never have to deal with the consequences (and political blow-back) of living with radical laws on any of these issues. No wonder so many voters believe that, despite the differences in policies, it doesn't really make any difference which gets elected. Meanwhile the 28 real issues listed in italics above -- the resolution of which (or our failure to properly address) will have far-reaching implications for the type of world we live in in the future, the quality of our lives, and quite possibly our survival as a species, get next to no attention in the campaigns and in the media. The candidates are free to talk about these at a very high level, speaking in platitudes about their importance but making no promises, taking no strong stands, and offering no plan of action for dealing with them. Why? Because of the tacit agreement by pollsters not to raise them, the media to talk about them as important and complex and difficult but not urgent, and to play down any solutions that might require a party to take a political stand, the major parties not to force the other's hand by getting into a no-win (for them) debate on these intractible and expensive problems, and we, the citizens, who won't call any of these three complicitous groups to account for their unwillingness to tackle these real issues in more than non-committal, hand-wringing ways. So what is the answer? Partly, we need a host of democratic reforms (campaign finance reform, voting system reform, an end to gerrymandering etc.) that will open up the political systems in the English-speaking nations to third parties and hence broaden debate to cover issues that any party considers important. Partly, too, we need media reforms (political independence from corporate ownership and control, local autonomy, less concentration of ownership, less dependence on corporate advertising) that will encourage and enable the mainstream media to cover a broader range of issues, educate the public about these issues, and challenge politicians to take clear and actionable positions on them. Ultimately, though, it's up to us to realize we're being had, to educate ourselves about the critical issues that face our world, and to take personal responsibility for addressing them. We can refuse to vote for politicians who don't take a clear stand on these issues, who fail to deliver on their promises, or who block the needed democratic and media reforms described above, abandon mass media that pander to political interests and public ignorance, in favour of independent media and public broadcasters that present fuller, better information, refuse to buy from corporations that lobby for laws against the public interest, support dishonest and disreputable politicians, or exhibit socially or environmentally irresponsible behaviours, consume less, and recycle more, and in general take more personal responsibility as consumers, work for changes in the education system that will give future generations the knowledge and skills needed to understand and deal with these issues, using social pressure, technology and entrepreneurship, instead of waiting for politicians and regulators to do everything for us, become volunteers and activists, to bring about change person-to-person, at a level far more meaningful and effective than anything centralized government can hope to accomplish, and perhaps most importantly, engage each other in meaningful discourse, 'smarten each other up' by sharing information and ideas and engaging in critical debate on real issues and brainstorming on possible solutions when we meet socially, instead of letting the media dictate the subjects of our conversation. The current system works well for those with political power and economic wealth, protecting it and entrenching it. Big corporations (including the big media) and major political parties have no motivation to change the system. The dumbing-down of public discourse to simple, often trivial issues plays right into their hands. But their power depends on our complacency. Think about your children and grandchildren, decide what are your real issues, and start talking about them, and doing something about them. Don't wait for the politicians and other 'leaders' to catch up -- there's nothing in it for them. It's time to leave them behind, give up on them, and take matters into our own hands, before it's too late. 4:16:56 PM  trackback []  comment []

© Copyright 2004 Dave Pollard. Last update: 01/10/2004; 12:47:42 PM.