Shades of Grey, or Maybe Purple?

Does anyone remember that line in the Gettysburg Address about the government being "... of the people, by the people and for the people?" You know what that implies don't you? Right, it implies one, that WE are the government, and two, that the government is made up of human beings- frail, imperfect human beings. There is going to be no perfect government and no perfect government solution to anything, but because of implication number one, we can't just chuck the whole thing. After all, who chucks themselves?

I got an email from my mom about the laws and promises broken by the democratic party in relation to the social security system. It was the usual nanny state concerns that many Republicans have. On the other hand, I've listened to three or four episodes of This American Life that told stories of the numerous civil rights laws that have been tossed aside by the Bush Administration. I sort of think that you're going to be more upset with whichever party is breaking the laws that you hold in a higher priority, but either way something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

What makes me sad about our election system is that no one comes out a winner. By the time we elect someone he or she, as well as the losing opponent, has been torn to shreds. For some reason too many people don't feel comfortable standing by their man unless the other man, or woman, is an evil villain. It's pretty extreme and I can't say that I'm all that comfortable with it.

I was thinking of this in church on Sunday when the teacher was talking about Jesus' command to love your enemies. He was saying that you're not going to find yourself in the Kingdom of God now if you can't love your enemies. Somehow my thought train went through several stations until it arrived at the realization that, in governmental politics at least, we make enemies where there shouldn't have to be any. We divide ourselves up into groups with impenetrable boundaries and then are angry because we can't get anything done. We want people to be both compromising and uncompromising at the same time. We want there to be the side of right and the side of evil and then expect those same people to work on the same team.

I can't say that I see it happening in Washington or Lansing, but I think we need a little humility, a little seeing the other side as being made of the same imperfect humans as your side. Which brings me back to Mr. Lincoln. Since we are the government, maybe WE could start this humility thing. We could choose to stop carving things up into what we see as clearly black and white, red and blue territory. We could choose to be different in our own small circles and in the way we deal with The Other that we see every day.

I know how pie in the sky that sounds, but aren't you ready for some pie? Aren't you a little beat down by having to fight for your side all the time? Doesn't marshaling your arguments and lining up your shots just make you tired and hungry? Come on, let's just sit down together and have some pie; blueberry is a nice purple pie.