Politics (Belén)

Politicks is the science of good sense, applied to public affairs, and, as those are forever changing, what is wisdom to-day would be folly and perhaps, ruin to-morrow. Politicks is not a science so properly as a business. It cannot have fixed principles, from which a wise man would never swerve, unless the inconstancy of men's view of interest and the capriciousness of the tempers could be fixed. [Fisher Ames (1758-1808)]

Personally, I believe that this a very accurate quote regarding what politics really are, and it might partially help you understand the reason for my answer to the question stated in this assignment. How can we change men’s interest and capriciousness of tempers? How can we stop men from fighting over power or for competing to see who the best is?

Since the beginning of times, men have fought among themselves to prove that they are worthy, and once they have obtained power, they have actually struggle to keep it. It is our nature; it comes from our deeper instincts as animals, as one of the million species that live in this planet. The only thing distinguishing us from other animals is the capacity of thinking and communicating such thoughts, and the ability of differentiating bad from good. But, what is bad and what is good?, what is right? What is wrong? The answers for these questions are all relative, just as any other aspect regarding abstract concepts, and politics are based on that. So, maybe, what is good for one will harm the other… Men work on a basis of personal interest, which is why they will not accept changes if they are not, let’s say, “fit” for them, and how would I as a single individual be able to choose for the millions of people living in Earth?

Politics is not something we can play with as Gods or Goddesses, by moving the pieces as if it were a chessboard. Moreover, we should really think of what we want to accomplish and the consequences that those actions might have. Politics cannot be handled in the same way everywhere, it is not about magic, and if it were, and if I had the magical ability to remake the world politically in any way I thought convenient, I would not change it at all. It is not up to me to decide because if I did I would base such decisions on my own set of interests, and it might not suit everyone. I agree on the fact that things are not right, but I believe that changes have to start at an individual level on a social basis, meaning that we can have things our way as long as we do not harm ourselves or others, and that the best thing for actually changing things to the way in which most people may think appropriate is by educating ourselves and the generations to come under such principles.