Author Archive
“Medicare as we know it:” A Lesson in Demagoguery and Political Phrasing
Our nation faces a crushing burden of debt from an entitlement state that continues to accrete power in ways unknown to most people. We face the debt burden with a Congress full of unprecedented partisan rancor and a leadership deficit where very few are willing to rise above the fray and propose bold solutions. Indeed, the Congress offered only one solution to the budget and entitlement crisis, Representative Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) budget plan. The US Senate decided it would not attempt to pass a budget this year—for the second straight year—and the President only gave one speech on the budget, which has not assumed legislative form (the Congressional Budget Office, the non-partisan agency charged with formally scoring legislation, cannot score speeches). To make matters worse, the President invited Representative Paul Ryan to his speech at George Washington University, only to call his plan “unserious” and “uncourageous” after seating Ryan in the first row—just when the GOP expected an olive branch on debt and deficit reduction. Read the rest of this entry »
“A Republic, Madam…If You Can Keep It”
As it usually does, David Brooks’ column caught my attention this week. Examining the nature of democracy, Brooks concludes that the most recent battles over the debt and deficit in Washington will not yield fruitful outcomes absent a reversion to republican (small-r) politics. Brooks expounds upon this by labeling our current democracy the “politics of solipsism.” “The [current] political culture encourages politicians and activists to imagine that the country’s problems would be solved if other people’s interests and values magically disappeared.” Instead, he says, we need a true leadership class, of the kind that existed “as late as the Truman and Eisenhower Administrations,” to balance interests and passions. Read the rest of this entry »
Self-Governance and the Expansive View of Politics
Normally I do not put much stock in political polling, especially on deep policy issues after politicians on both sides of the aisle demagogue political talking points with the American people. However, this recent poll on the front page of The New York Times certainly caught my attention. Although the poll includes policy-oriented questions, it also includes emotive questions and shows that nearly 70% of Americans believe the nation is on the wrong track; meanwhile, disapproval of President Obama’s handling of the economy has never been higher—57% of Americans. The poll concludes: “Americans are more pessimistic about the nation’s economic outlook and overall direction than they have been at any time since President Obama’s first two months in office, when the country was still officially ensnared in the Great Recession.” Read the rest of this entry »
Literature Review: Rilke’s Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge
Today was a particularly nice day in the United Kingdom, the kind that does not come around often in this part of the world. The sun was fully out and the temperature in the high 60’s—a rarity this time of year—and in England of all places! With the fleetingness of this moment in mind, I decided to shirk my thesis writing and head outside for some pleasure reading. Once situated on the bank of the Thames, I brandished a copy of the Austrian poet, Rainer Maria Rilke’s Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge. Although I had read it before, I wanted to see what I could get out of it a second time. As all of Rilke’s writing does, The Notebooks keep on giving. Read the rest of this entry »
On Leadership and Solitude: Its Connection and Absence in Society
In a speech to cadets at the US Military Academy, William Deresiewicz addresses issues of privacy vs. solitude, leadership vs. achievement, and conformity vs. vision. Deresiewicz argues cogently that universities, especially top universities, perform a great disservice to their students by failing to position them for successful and reflective leadership. In fact, Deresiewicz questions their very definition of leadership as askance. Elite education no longer affords students the toolbox to offer refreshing visions and transformational change. Instead, they teach graduates to “keep the ship moving,” follow an established routine, conform to their superiors, and make conservative choices, if faced with any. And this definitional change in leadership does not apply solely to those working in government! Read the rest of this entry »
