One could be thankful, I guess, that most people probably aren't paying much attention yet. But soon they will be, and that's worrisome in the following sense. Over the Bush years, there has been damaging drift toward absolutism. You're with us or against us, diplomacy is appeasement, tax cuts forever, the axis of evil, markets always work best (and government, worst)...all of these have become mantras of the right, and McCain appears to be not only carrying this mantel, but hoisting it even higher. Certainly, after 9/11, it was hard not to see things in black and white. When our nation was attacked, the instinct of the body politic was to strike back hard and fast, without a lot a nuanced analysis. But that was almost seven years ago, and if anything, our national disparagement of nuance or balance has gotten to the point where it is clearly blocking our ability to address the challenges we face, both internal and external.... In Buddhism, the notion of balance is central. The path to enlightenment is never paved with absolutes, but with impermanence, which in policy terms means that reality is far too changeable to be guided by rules like those that have come to dominate these debates. True leadership means finding the balance we have lost. It may thus come down to this question: What would Buddha do?
One of the trends I've noticed that's become increasingly more disturbing with the passage of time is the drift towards political absolutism. When a company such as Dunkin' Donuts feels it necessary to pull a television ad because Rachael Ray is wearing a "terrorist scarf", you be pretty well assured that critical, rational thinking has taken a holiday. It's a scarf, people- NOT a statement of Dunkin' Donuts hatred of America?
Perhaps because this nation has lacked anything resembling true leadership over the past eight years, our nation debate has been reduced to meaningless arguments over things like "terrorist scarves" and flag pins. Rather than engaging Americans in meaningful debates about issues that define who we are and what we want American democracy to look like, politicians today engage in sound bites and "gotcha" politics.
The question of "What would Buddha do?" is relevant in the sense that until, and unless, we can get past the mindless state of our current national debate, we run the risk of running in place. If Americans don't insist on meaningful debate, we will get exactly what we have for the past few years- a good deal of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
We can do better...and we deserve better. The question is, are we willing to take our country back and demand better?
