denniscoleman.net

We seem to stand at a time politically, when individuals make a lifetime commitment to a political party, and make all of their decisions from this shaky foundation.

We hear this language in a variety of ways, but generally, people are willing to define themselves as either republicans or democrats. I don?t mean to exclude those that define themselves as independents, or libertarians. Only their number excludes them; they are a minority. By far, the definition we make for ourselves is either Republican or Democrat. Parents even raise their children by saying things like, ?We are Republicans.?

It is these people, who falsely believe that America is a democracy, that are killing the ideals that the Constitution lays out for us. 

They call themselves by the polite definition of either Republican, or Democrat. This stiff definition actually means that they are Partisans, at best.

There is not a thing wrong with being partisan. By its definition, it means that you have a fervent belief in something. That?s great. Strong belief makes for change.

However, consider the actual behavior of so many partisans. When their candidate is elected, they stand behind him or her without question. When the candidate of the opposition is elected, they do everything that they can to block the movement of their desire for change, and the laws that they propose. To most Democrats, Republicans are evil folks that must be stopped by political force, and vice versa.

They are intolerant of the opposing point of view. And that, by definition, makes them bigots. What do we know of bigots? We know that they are hateful, and that they are intolerant.

In fact, many of these Democrats and Republicans would freely concede that those who express their bigotry and hate through matters of race, are stupid. They are willing to label them, at minimum, stupid on the issue of intolerance of another person because of their race, or their religion.

Democrats and Republicans alike would do well to consider that this bigotry, this intolerance of the other side, is just plain stupid.

Sometimes stupid is irritating, sometimes it is dangerous. Political bigotry is dangerous to the republic.

The Constitution makes no allowance for democracy. The founding fathers were wise enough to know that democracy, as it gathers the strength first of partisanship, then bigotry, leads to the potential mob rule of democracy. Consider this, only as an example, from our recent history. Some Republicans do not support the current war in the Middle East. However, they cannot speak against it, because it is the work of their party. Why can?t they? Because of the belief that if they do, the opposing party will gain rule, and they are intolerant of the other side.

Therefore, they support something that they do not believe in, for the sake of political power. Can this be wise?

Be mindful that this comment has nothing to do with war; it has to do with politics. This same position can be amplified more strongly by the people that accept that American government has condoned torture, but refuse to speak against it, because they are Republicans.

Certainly, they are equally powerful examples of Democrats that refuse to be guided by their conscience, rather than their politics.

To continue in this behavior moves us further away from being a Republic, toward a Democracy, and finally an Oligarchy. If you don?t believe me, you can look it up. Try reading about the fall of the Roman Empire.

The Roman Empire flourished initially, because it was a Republic. The Romans had seen the mistakes, and the demise of the Greek democratic system. It was the shift in Roman government, politically motivated, that sought power in the majority rule, which ultimately led to Oligarchy, and the Caesar?s.

Do we have a way out? Perhaps.

We would all have to remember that America is a Republic, and therefore, a nation ruled by laws, not power.

Ultimately, it means that we have to make our decisions based on right and wrong, without giving a damn what side of the aisle we sit in.