Political agendas are a human thing

Why in America today do politicians focus of finding or inventing new problems to solve? Why can’t politicians run on maintaining the status quo, or even improving it?

The status quo is a full plate because of all the past successes, many in the public policies started by governments, local, state, and federal. Most Americans have electricity, clean tap water, sitting flush toilets, heat without having to stay up all night, and an expectation that their children will outlive them thanks to public health policies. This is way beyond what even European royalty had a century ago, and 2/3 of the world still does not have. That we can make taking care of what we have is a legitimate expectation that voters should demand. We’ve been accepting less. Recent stories of falling bridges, embarrassing public education examples, poisoned pet food and toothpaste and medicine, contaminated human food, and lead in children’s toys are just the reported examples. Seldom reported are the citizens stolen from and the undermanned and under funded local police too often saying sorry. Seldom reported is the changing standard of poverty, USA style. Never reported is our government switching from draining wetlands to restoring wetlands in a noble environmental cause. It will take the come back of mosquitoes and malaria to change all this. And don’t blame the government; it just does what the politicians’ laws dictate.

Of course politicians focus on finding or inventing new problems to solve in order to enhance their chances of getting elected, or reelected. In the end, leadership on this most important issue has to come from the voters. Do we need a continuing succession of new problems to solve, or a need to socially engineer or reengineer our American culture, albeit with even more taxpayer money? The follow on question is: is there a law of diminishing returns going on? Are we voting for politicians who spend more and more taxpayer money to get less and less on new problems? And the second follow on question is one of results. What is most important to voters who pay taxes. Is it results, or good intentions?

In America, the concept of career politicians has gained traction. Probably we voters contributed to this. In the same vein, we American voters can dictate new priorities for the politicians we elect. Call it a soft revolution.