By Raffaela Kenny-Cincotta, News Staff
Stubbornness always seems to screw us humans over. It’s stubbornness that causes our silly arguments to persist, and it’s stubbornness that causes helpful advice to fall on deaf ears. And let’s not forget one of the worst results of stubbornness: the United States Government shutdown.
No matter your political stance on Obamacare or the debt ceiling, if you have any kind of problem-solving skills you can realize that shutting down the government was just plain senseless. In the history of mankind, no problem has ever been solved by complete inaction, and that is exactly what a shutdown is. Essentially, the entire US Government transformed into a game of chicken between Democrats and Republicans, each with the blind faith that the other will swerve before catastrophe. The irony of the situation is practically unbearable: the US Government, shining global beacon of functional democracy, is crippled by an unruly representative body.
There’s a George Washington quote I often throw around when attempting to participate in political debate. Concerned about the future pitfalls of political parties in America, Washington speculated that parties would become “potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government.”
In my opinion, the culprit behind this shutdown is not one specific politician or party, but it is the bipartisan system in which our government functions. In Washington, D.C., it often seems that party members hold loyalty to party over country, considering oppositional party members enemies, not colleagues. Old veterans of the House and Senate don’t speak out against the overwhelming political control of party leadership because they are able to reap benefits from being a longtime member. Young rookie Senators and Representatives have little choice but to follow orders, for fear of losing their party endorsement to other political hopefuls, more “savvy” and willing to listen to their elder statesmen.
Logic would tell us that a government shutdown would horrify politicians. After all, wouldn’t a shutdown be an obvious sign that they are unable to do their jobs properly? In reality, some politicians and many Americans celebrated the shutdown as a victory over political adversaries across the aisle. Logic tells us that elected officials should be individuals who are wholeheartedly dedicated to bettering the lives of their constituents through an efficient use the American political system. Reality tells us that all too often the men and women we choose to represent us, either aspire to climb the political ladder or don’t really care about the American people at all.
Spotlight Playlist: Sounds of the Government Shutdown
“Why Can’t We Be Friends” by War
“Waiting in Vain” by Bob Marley
“Bad Religion” by Frank Ocean
“Just Might Be Ok” by Lupe Fiasco
“Get Over It” by The Eagles
