Please forgive my smart-ass “wordsmithing” in the title but I must occasionally manifest some demonstration out of all my exorbitant educational expenses. :-D. I.E.-There was no real “will” for Unity of any kind among that ‘mob’ in attendance at the Capitol.
I have tried to digest President Trump’s address to the nation last week but much like a hormone-fed steak late-at-night, the reactions to it have kept me agitated with both tummy aches and headaches.
The gathering was more like an ‘association’ of petulant politicians than the elected ‘employees’ of the American taxpayers. This event just provided more evidence of my contention that people in government are mere “managers” with nary a “Leader” in the entire room.
Leaders tend to build consensus of WHAT a collected vision needs be and works on the HOW with his/her constituents. Managers, on the other hand, are obsessed with the “how” to the point of “cutting off our collective noses to spite our aggregate faces.” How anyone could disagree with “Mom and apple pie” issues is just totally perplexing to me.
It sems like doing ‘nothing’ seems preferable to doing something new/different. I always thought we were a culture of innovators. Or, to couch it negatively, doing the same thing and expecting different results is a diagnosis of “insanity.” That crowd was a good ‘poster’ for the need of more mental health among Washington D.C. representatives.
Unlike my children who might listen to me for important things, my adolescents think they “know it all” without realizing/remembering who is responsible for their existence and who “pays the bills.” Leaders check their egos at the door of their organizations while managers need to widen the door for the ego which precedes them. The audience last Tuesday was more like teenagers and less like the dutiful servants which I had hoped them to be.
A secret to the successful “visioning” of Leaders is the art of compromise. A mature perspective is more like the acceptance of the 80%/20% principle. The absolute best one can create among a group of smart, capable, caring individuals is three-quarters of any head’s desires. No matter how passionate, others are equally committed and therefore 80% equals 100% in actual reality of the world.
My teens do not seem to comprehend that factor nor do those members of the government who can’t/won’t settle for anything less than 100% of their ego’s wants/desires. Genuine “needs” seem to have taken a ‘back seat’ for those who cannot distinguish between authentic requirements of the USA and exercising their own individual/party “power.”
It never ceases to amaze me how many self-professed “Christians” do not follow the New Testament’s teachings. It is also ironic that so many self-described students of history ‘doom’ to repeat it. Was it not Abe Lincoln who proclaimed: “A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand”? Yet, members of each party refuse to acknowledge (by refusing the stand) any “What” that they cannot ‘own’/take credit for. Whether as individuals or as a party collective, this is the political version of: “if I can’t be the pitcher, then I am taking my bat and ball and going home to tell my daddy”. May I also add that those without an ounce of shame or respect for humility are not very emotionally/psychologically balanced in any healthy manner.
While our elected ‘enablers’ may be able to see things in shades-of-gray, they certainly seem like they can only act/behave in either black or while. I totally realize that I am asking them to do things that are somewhat antithetical to Human Nature but unfortunately, that is what is required from Leaders. As a matter of classification, Leadership is more akin Divine Nature while management is more closely aligned/categorized with Human Nature. Hey, don’t “shoot the messenger,” I am just telling you the way it should be but is not the way it is currently.
I think the heart of the matter at present is the lack of creative ability amongst our electorate. As someone with a dissertation written about “Increasing Adult Creativity,” I can attest from research that Creativity is separate from Intelligence (almost inversely so) and rather antithetical to ego. Creativity is different than “talent” or “art” but can be defined as “the ability to generate a maximum number of possible alternative solutions to a problem or challenge.” The folks at the State of The Union Address seemed hell-bent on sticking to their previous ‘guns’ and “falling on their swords” rather than being open to anyone/anything else.
Any group “brainstorming” possible solutions to any problem must engage in both divergent and convergent thinking. I just do not see that process happening with our legislators. With roughly 50% of the country from each party, neither one can ignore the other party if looking for a more “Perfect Union.” I just cannot fathom anything but ‘wheel’ spinning after first continually reinventing that wheel if we continue along this path. What we need are a series of “ah-ha” creativity moments together in unity actions and not just the “ah” or the “ha.”
Maybe instead of a great “communicator” or a great “negotiator”, we need a great Creator or, at least then Son of a great Creator?