The Political System

"Man is by nature a political animal."
                                                         -Aristotle

If politics is all about "power", then by saying man is a political animal by nature, we are saying we have an instinctual (reference to animals) drive for power and control. On the other hand though, Aristotle could be arguing the fact that we instinctively seek to form community, which in turn creates a government. It could really be either or even both. Ultimately however, Aristotle is saying that we have a primal urge to act in some political manner. The trick is defining precisely what politics truly is.

Politics: Activity or process by which we make decisions about who gets what, when and how.

That's all well and good, but how precisely do we create government so that it is most effective for us? As we discussed in class, it comes down to how we define humanity because that will provide the fundamental foundation on which we create a successful society. If our fundamental definition is one of biological significance, we would want a society that would allow us to best procreate and prosper. If we are artists/storytellers, then our laws should focus on individual rights and freedoms (expressions).

The problem is of course that we cannot label humanity under one particular quality. Rules encouraging one definition (freedom) may conflict with others that we find equally important (safety). Moreover we each have our own specific ideology, preconceived ideas about the world, so it's impossible to be objective. The main lesson we were taught from this was to essentially say, "Nice Try" to anyone who tries to define human nature.

The above quote illustrates how we are focused on politics in some way, but how are we supposed to arrange politics if no one form of government will ever perfectly fit our needs? There are plenty of theoretical concepts of the ideal government (a la communism), but they only seem to work on paper. Why are we so fixated on making a government/society work when it will apparently never be obtainable?

The reason why we do this searching is because we will always have some form of government. I feel it is impossible for a people to have a community without one. We have one in power even now, so although we may never find the perfect "fit" we must try to get as close as possible to best suit the needs of our people. To add to the challenge of defining humanity, we have to remember that the society on which it's based is also changing.

As we said in class, a corrupt government of many leaders during Aristotle and Plato's time was said to be a democracy. At the time however that was because the majority consisted of many farmers or "country bumpkins" with little education. Giving a vote to all the ignorant in their eyes was utter chaos. Today however that figure has been flipped, with child education becoming a public endeavor.

The world in which we view humanity is changing, so we must work to both fit humanity and the world in which we live into our system of government. Laws shouldn't remain in place just because they've "always been", but for their purpose. We should never assume that something must remain set in stone because in a world of becoming there is always room for improvement. Times change, laws must change to adapt.

Concepts and ideals one-hundred years ago (such as rules against African American people in society) no longer fit and were changed for the better. Politics should not be a rock, but a living, breathing creature. Fundamental ideas may be allowed to stay if their reasoning remains sound. It's true that not all change will be beneficial, however if one constantly stays the same, either in a government or one's personal life, they will never improve.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."                                                                                -Albert Einstein

Never stop questioning.