Sunday May 27, 2012

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  • 0

    irishosaru

    Greed.

  • 0

    smartacus

    Yes, politics, if conducted properly, should be a noble profession. When I was a kid, I used to really respect presidents, prime ministers, governors and mayors. I thought they were trying to pass laws that would help people.

    I believe that many people, when they first go into politics, honestly do want to make a difference and are very idealistic, kind of like James Stewart's character in "Mr Smith Goes to Washington." The problem is that anyone who gets elected becomes dependent on the special interest groups that funded their campaign, and so they end up compromising their principles. One compromise leads to another, and there goes the idealism.

    I was in Australia during the recent election campaign, and every day on TV, I saw both candidates for prime minister in a different city, promising different things to different groups. One day, it was pensioners, another day, it was small business owners, and so on. I wished the reporters could have asked them: "But you promised this same policy to that group yesterday. How are you going to pay for it?"

    When I look at what passes for government in Japan, and the low voter turnout in many so-called democracies, I'm starting to wonder if a benign dictatorship wouldn't be the best form of government - with me as the dictator, of course.

  • 0

    cactusJack

    So much money to grab by doing simple favors...and once they grab it, "Ka Ching!", there is more money to grab for a simple favor, ad nauseam.

  • 0

    Jbeezy

    MONEY

  • 0

    Disillusioned

    could and should be a noble profession

    Really? I'm interested to know how you came to this conclusion. A prerequisite of being a politician is to be a self-promoting ego-maniacal megalomaniac.

  • 0

    Junnama

    What? Noble profession? Politics is about power, influence, money.... People who deal in that aren't noble!

  • 0

    borscht

    The assumption is politics can be a noble profession. Since when have money- and power-grubbing cretins been considered 'noble?' Did Julius Caesar cross the Rubicon because he wanted to help the Roman citizens live better lives? Or because he wanted to amass a fortune in cash and power? Did Jesus, Buddha, or Gandhi run for political office? More recently, has Meg Whitman spent over $120,000,000 for a job that pays about $150,000 a year because she's noble and wants to balance California's budget?

  • 0

    escape_artist

    Define "noble" here. Mimicking others here, I say it's simply because many of those entering politics look to benefit themselves first (greed being as essential component/characteristic), before society and the constituents they supposedly were elected to represent. It's human nature for some to lust after power, glory, and control over masses of people, not to mention wealth, all easily attainable in politics, some political systems easier than others.

  • 0

    Kwaabish

    James Madison - “The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.”

  • 0

    Junnama

    Well said James Madison....

  • 0

    TSRnow

    "Greed", agreed.

  • 0

    spot

    A noble profession? Over 150 years ago, Abraham Lincoln said "Every mother wants her son to be president. They just don't want them to be a politician." (often attributed to JFK and many others after Lincoln.)

  • 0

    linro

    Why is politics, which could and should be a noble profession, conducted so badly?

    America the largest economy in the world!

    Has a Deficit of $ 1 3 , 5 0 2 , 9 4 5 , 5 1 7 , 5 5 7 . 0 6 The estimated population of the United States is 309,126,746 so each citizen's share of this debt is $43,680.94.

    Japan was the second largest economy in the world!

    Has a Deficit of $7.1 trillion. The amount is equivalent to about 6.24 million yen ($55,900) for every Japanese.

    How Noble of the politicians, asking us to pay for their mistakes!!!!

    For example, If an employee/s or CEO (BP example)at a firm was loosing the company, money! in this pathetic way, what would you or anybody in their right mind say?? or do?? Time for a BIG RETHINK!!!

  • 0

    jason6

    People like being lied to. They all want to believe in rosy futures while the world goes into the toilet around them.

  • 0

    jonobugs

    Don't forget power. I think that's a big factor too. People who want power and money are often not in tune with being noble (from my viewpoint)

  • 0

    bontakun

    James Madison did indeed say it best. Wonder how many "noble politicians" know?

  • 0

    american_bengoshi

    ANSWER: Human greed

  • 0

    isthistheend

    I'll agree it is also done not well sometimes in other countries, but JPN has a particularly funny, lame, poorly handled system, in my opinion.

  • 0

    sf2k

    because the politicians reflect the ignorance of people in general. If you have a pointless and thoughtless society, then politicians are going to reflect that. Society stopped being progressive in the 80's because the man was paying too much tax or didn't want to pay any more, thus the PR machine dumbed people down. Variation on the same theme, pick a country

  • 0

    spot

    "Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys." - P. J. O'Rourke

  • 0

    techall

    Poli = from the greek meaning many and ticks = blood sucking little pests.

  • 0

    mikekchar

    Politics is politics. You know how there are some companies where office politics seems to be what gets you to the top rather than skill at your job? Well, in politics the skill you need is politics. I don't think it is surprising that a job whose entire skill set revolves around manipulating people in order to get your way attracts mostly selfish people. Not all politicians are that way, but I suspect that there must be at least a little bit of that feeling for you to succeed at the job.

    No I reject the thesis that politics is conducted badly. I think people just have the wrong expectations from politicians. On average a politician is in it for whatever he can get out of it. That being said, if the politician has a common interest with you they can be useful. But it is stupid to abdicate responsibility for running the world to these people. We must each work hard to make our own areas good.

  • 0

    Judderman

    i think we all are susceptible to having money/power corrupt us.Every country will have had similar stories of politicians profitting from dodgy deals/brown envelopes being passed around or fiddling expenses.when the opportunity arises for people to cut corners in getting ahead or making a quick buck,i think most people in their heart of hearts would find it difficult to pass it up.

    the lack of transparency in how decisions are made and whos involved in various processes means politicians may feel that they wont get caught if they pocket cash or take backhanders.its an exclusive small group at the top level.

  • 0

    tclh

    Politicians are the ones who create all sorts of laws for us to obey ,thats why. When you have power to make law ,will you create laws that disadvantage yourself? However I think politicians in free and democratic countries are OK, we can "punish" them ( or so we think) with our votes. We also should admit that they do a very difficult job in running a country and get elected at the same time.

  • 0

    sakurala

    Because everyone wants to be the alpha dog... for some its money, others its power or popularity. Also the whole political party sets up an insider outsider ditomony which leads to childish behavior. Instead of constructive discussions we get debates in which one party does the equivalent of sticking its fingers in its ears and go ''la la la, I cant hear you''.

  • 0

    Klein2

    It is like any contact sport. You have to like to get dirty to be good at it.

    I just read a long article about Jon Stewart, so this kind of catches me at a bad time. Just simply, politics is a necessary evil. Extreme systems would yield good results, but most people could not handle them. They want to just gang up into clans as primates have always done.

    Politicians should be drafted as soldiers are. It should be a lottery. Then people would take it seriously and everyone would do their best and get lots of help.

    The second best system would be a bureaucracy with ombudsmen.

    Anything else tends toward corruption and vested interests. It has always been that way on whatever scale you can imagine.

  • 0

    donkusai

    As politics turns more confrontational, the politicians turn nastier. As the back-stabbing, lying and fraud increase, those with a more noble attitude are either buried or get out, leaving those who see politics as either a huge ego-trip (your run-of-the-mill psychopath type), or those who wish to line their pockets however they can (the greedy). Even those who argue for smaller government do so with the backing of lobby groups who represent those who stand to make fortunes from relaxed laws, allowing them to maximise profits at the consumer's expense. Doesn't matter which side of politics you look at, it is difficult these days to find anyone trustworthy or honest.

    As for politics being noble, has it ever really been? Elitist in the past, definitely, but noble?

  • 0

    alladin

    It is because you have so many self-centerd selfish people that are in office that should not be there. All that they seem to care about is themselves and not doing the job that they were hired to do. They start their days with only one thought in mind, "How can they screw the government without anyone noticing anything at all". Politics is no longer a noble job because everyone that is in it, are all corrupted with an idealistic view on how they can screw everyone while they live in their rich houses and rich lifestyle.

  • 0

    maxpower

    Anybody who wants to be in power, should not be in power

  • 0

    Dewaashita

    It is noble, politics, that by design, it is set up to serve the people. This parental motivation, like the police, is set up for the protection of the people.

    Usually this protection is from the people themselves.

    The Mayans built their laws in such a way to reinforce a form of government within the social structures of their institutions. Rephrased, the laws were more severly dealt to those of higher social status. With great freedom came great responsiblity.

    It is disturbing to watch any one group of anybody stereotyped. Racial, political, financially--pick any group. If they are politicians, as a group, I am less likely to lump them together in a assumed list of charachter traits as I would anyone else. As I have gotten older. I have missed too much, throughout my time, by my own false assumptions.

    I can safely surmise there are those that are noble out there. But in a group so heavily stereotyped, I doubt there is much room for breathing.

  • 0

    dolphingirl

    maxpower: Well said!

  • 0

    Weasel

    Since when was the public ever noble? Two centuries ago? Last time I checked politicians are from the public - ergo = the profession wasn't noble from the get-go.

  • 0

    illsayit

    Their politics cant save them from their spiritual. BUT, Politics is noble. It is a lot more light-hearted.

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