political, personal, same thing
Via Ladida, the following quote sums up something really tangible and true:
Why am I so interested in politics? But if I were to answer you very simply, I would say this: why shouldn’t I be interested? That is to say, what blindness, what deafness, what density of ideology would have to weigh me down to prevent me from being interested in what is probably the most crucial subject to our existence, that is to say, the society in which we live, the economic relations within which it functions, and the system of power which defines the regular forms and the regular permissions and prohibitions of our conduct? The essence of our life consists, after all, of the political functioning of the society in which we find ourselves. - Michel Foucault
I was just discussing this in Sociological Methods this morning with a few classmates. We were agreeing that (especially this year) the personal is political and that where you stand politically says so much about what’s important to you and how you act in the world. I’ve been reading articles lately that discuss how the polarization over this election is tearing friendships apart and breaking up couples. None of this surprises me much.
While I believe in the shared consciousness of all living things and I’m sure many Bush supporters are perfectly “nice” people, I have to say that if you are voting for the re-election of this administration, we undoubtedly don’t have much in common. I got an e-mail a few months ago from some guy who saw the big “Dump Bush” picture on the left hand side of this page and he wrote me to ask, “What do you possible have against Bush? He’s great and has restored morality to the presidency, etc, etc…” I wrote back to him, “If you even have to ask that question, there’s probably little we could say to get through to each other anyway, so let’s just leave it at that.”
This morning, we were agreeing that we can’t at all relate when people say that politics doesn’t interest them much and that they can be married to/date/be best friends with someone whose politics differ so markedly from their own because it’s “just a different viewpoint”. I cannot imagine being in a romantic relationship with a Bush supporter; I just couldn’t even be attracted to one because it’s such a glaring sign that we don’t place the same emphasis on the same values. I mean, I’m sorry, but you cannot love the earth, be reverent toward forests and critters and the justice of it all and vote for Bush - the two cannot co-exist. (If they do - wake up!) If you are both genuinely concerned about third world poverty and well aware of the systemics and contexts that created that poverty, I cannot imagine you’d be voting for the ideology of this administration. These are just a few of many examples where if you’re voting for Bush, you’re just not making the same connections I am - we really are living entirely different perceptions. Doesn’t make for a good dating match. (And I’m sure many Bush supporters would feel they couldn’t be with someone like me.)
This is not to say I go around intentionally shunning and being rude to Republicans. I think underneath, all people are looking to love and be loved and I’m committed to drawing that out in my personal interactions with anyone. All I’m saying is that I think one’s political persuasion this year goes a long way as a pointer. I’m sure there’ll be at least one of you who blasts me for being arrogant in this post, but damn, I have a hunch a lot of us are feeling this way right now.
leblanc said,
October 20, 2004 @ 2:42 pm
“We were agreeing that (especially this year) the personal is political”
i have the best quote for you on that from Reading Lolita in Tehran. i was going to post it today but forgot to bring my book.
in the past, we have tried to keep them separate. but why? i ask. the political affects the personal (and vice versa), especially today.
you know my name said,
October 20, 2004 @ 4:38 pm
The best part of it all is the “say no to Bush” bumperstickers…..I channel my inner Beavis every time I see one.
Just whatever you do- don’t vote in Florida.
Emily said,
October 20, 2004 @ 5:14 pm
Ah yes, I do know your name…there’s only one Syrathos in my world! Inner Beavis…ah yes *chuckle*.
Kath said,
October 20, 2004 @ 5:52 pm
I share your viewpoint Emily..especially this year.
Funny how others can feel totally different. Was canvassing for Kerry this past Saturday. My canvass partner and I rang the doorbell at a very upscale house with two Suburbans in the driveway. When the man that answered the door took a look at us in our Kerry gear, he screamed upstairs “Honey, the enemy is here’! Turns out they’ve been married for 15 years…she’s a die-hard Dem, he’s a Bush-lovin’ Repub and they proceeded to entertain us with their back-and-forth play bickering. It was hilarious! As we were getting ready to leave (after giving her 6 tickets to a nearby Kerry rally in Pembroke Pines (FL) the next day) I asked her how they survived as a couple, given their HUGE political difference. And she said ‘at the end of the day, it comes down to love and respect and being able to see past imperfections’.
Something to think about, huh?
Christine said,
October 20, 2004 @ 7:52 pm
Emily
The comparsions are terrific in today’s blog.
Now, I am a committed Democrat (having been raised in a committed Republican home…..I survived and out lived most of them) and I am also married to someone who claims to be a Rep…..’*gasp*’….but he is voting for Kerry (and decided all on his own I might add…..)for many reasons and because he doesn’t like the arrogrant way in which he has been doing his job (which M says he hasn’t actually been caught doing)……what can I say….we have so much more in common than just politics….and the fact that he is smart enough to realise that Party affililation doesn’t make you smart and in this particular case one just needed to know how to steal…..
josh said,
October 20, 2004 @ 10:12 pm
Emily-
What a wonderful post. In addition to giving voice to some pretty powerful ideas, you just reminded me that I need to read Foucault!
Fascinating.
Pamela said,
October 20, 2004 @ 11:23 pm
In my previous incarnation, I often dated men who turned out to be Republican, even though they often claimed to be concerned about the environment or apartheid or nuclear power (this was the 80’s, OK, I’m old!). Hell, I even married one–didn’t last too long.
No wait! I married two, but here’s the thing, I converted this last one and he’s now a registered independent who most often votes a left-leaning ticket. So, I did a good thing marrying a Republican, right?
I find the party lines are drawn more deeply in the sand these days, certain tenets seem less negotiable. In a way it makes me sad, in a way it makes me feel like maybe I’ve just come alive.
As i find my life feeling more and more authentic, I don’t seem to meet too many people that lean to the right. I sort of like the idea of the couple that “Kath” met while she was canvassing, it’s charming. But I imagine it’s either tough for them at times, or one of them is not too committed to their ideology.
Medley said,
October 21, 2004 @ 4:35 am
Why Politics
In Washington, I don’t think I really measure up as a political junkie. As a
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