In this presidential election year, one question should loom above all others. In this nation of over 150 million eligible adults, are the 3 leading candidates, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden—the best we have to offer? Instead of the best and the brightness, we have assembled the mediocre and the inept. That gives rise to one more vital question Why?
Looking back on over 200 years of US history, it is glaringly apparent that the best and the brightest rarely seek political office. For example, Warren Buffet has spent his life as an entrepreneur and investor. Bill Gates and the late Steve Jobs developed the personal computer and software. Elon Musk is hard at work developing the environmentally perfect automobile. Richard Branson is preparing to launch private citizens into space. Going back over half a century, Dr. Jonas Salk developed the vaccine that ended the scourge of polio. And the list goes on and on.
Do you detect a trend? The truly gifted and talented use their abilities to create a safer, world, a healthier world, a more efficient and functional word, and in the process create jobs, wealth and raise the living standard for society.
What motivates the best and the brightest? It is the freedom to invent, innovate, experiment, to feel the rush of achieving their dreams, and in the process, raise us all to another level.
What motivates people to enter into politics? First, it must be noted that many principled, intelligent, caring people jump into the political arena. The problem is, these individuals are in the minority.
The majority of politicians are drawn to politics by 2 primary factors: power and control. They are enticed by the opportunity to control the lives of others, and to impose their beliefs on others.
Politicians do not invent, innovate, do research or perform surgery. What they do is tell other people how to live their lives. Their sole function is to exercise control over their fellow citizens. That is the narcotic that draws certain people to politics. To control the lives of other human beings and impose their will upon society.
If you refuse to shop at Walmart, Walmart cannot force you to change. If you refuse to buy a Ford, Ford is powerless to force you to change. Dislike cable? Just disconnect.
But government doesn’t work that way. Tell your elected officials that you no longer want to participate in Medicare, and see what happens. Tell your elected officials that you refuse to pay into Social Security, and see what happens. Tell your elected officials that you no longer want to pay taxes or register for the draft, and see what happens.
Government is about force and coercion, and the people who hold political office hold those positions because they embrace the idea of controlling the lives of others. Their role is not to create or produce; their role is to enforce their will on the lives and destinies of their fellow citizens.
The best and the brightness among us follow a higher calling. The mediocre among us seek political office because this is how they gain their stature in society: by bullying us to achieve their self-esteem. It is who and what they are.
