A metaphor for U.S. politics
Recently, someone tried decribing the two major U.S. parties with a poor visual metaphor. It got me wondering what a good metaphor may be. This is what I came up with... (Caveat emptor: Metaphors and analogies can be hazardous to one's health.)
I see a rational person at the center of the metaphor, someone who does not want the political parties interfering in his personal life nor in his economic life, someone who dislikes both parties. I visualize this as a person who is being set upon by two dangerous animals: say, a rabid elephant and a dangerous donkey (play along). Each of these animals is being restrained by a keeper.
The keepers are trying their "best" to hold the animals back, but the keepers are getting weaker and the animals are getting stronger. These keepers did a deal with the devil, trying to use their animals to get power, and now they're scared of the animals turning on them. Still, for now, the keepers are really trying (in their own pathetic way, and while still feeding the beasts) to keep them at bay.
Right now you do not have the strength for a frontal attack that will vanquish either beast. So, you try to set them on each other. You slash out at one, allowing the other to attack it as well. Then, that one gets too close, and you slash out at that one, and so on. You were about to slash out at one when a friend shouted: "Watch out! the other one is closer than you think."
A party-line vote is like a weak shot-gun fired in the direction of one or the other. Sometimes, that's all you've got, so you make a choice and shoot in one or the other general direction. The trainer might be weakened to, but that's the chance you take.
What's the way out of this mess? I suggest you do the following:
I see a rational person at the center of the metaphor, someone who does not want the political parties interfering in his personal life nor in his economic life, someone who dislikes both parties. I visualize this as a person who is being set upon by two dangerous animals: say, a rabid elephant and a dangerous donkey (play along). Each of these animals is being restrained by a keeper.
The keepers are trying their "best" to hold the animals back, but the keepers are getting weaker and the animals are getting stronger. These keepers did a deal with the devil, trying to use their animals to get power, and now they're scared of the animals turning on them. Still, for now, the keepers are really trying (in their own pathetic way, and while still feeding the beasts) to keep them at bay.
Right now you do not have the strength for a frontal attack that will vanquish either beast. So, you try to set them on each other. You slash out at one, allowing the other to attack it as well. Then, that one gets too close, and you slash out at that one, and so on. You were about to slash out at one when a friend shouted: "Watch out! the other one is closer than you think."
A party-line vote is like a weak shot-gun fired in the direction of one or the other. Sometimes, that's all you've got, so you make a choice and shoot in one or the other general direction. The trainer might be weakened to, but that's the chance you take.
What's the way out of this mess? I suggest you do the following:
- Grow stronger yourself
- Help the trainers get stronger
- Whenever possible, shoot at the beast without injuring the trainers
posted by SN at
1:38 PM
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