Where's the After Party?

Seems I've been wrong about a few things. I've been a Party pooper.

I've misjudged the ideological elasticity of my more conservative friends and family members. Turns out they're not crazy. Turns out that most of them, while registered as Republicans, are actually becoming something else. Same goes for many of my more moderate Democrat friends, the ones who aren't self-styled "Progressives".

A common Libertarian thread is emerging alongside a rising antipathy toward those who feel that government and society are best served by micro-managing individual lives. Whether one favors green energy, gay marriage, legal/illegal pot, economic growth, small business friendly policies (whatever those are), and so on, however noble the purpose behind each issue may be, people are sick as hell of someone else telling them how to live, how to be eco friendly, how to be a patriot, what paper to use to wipe their own ass, etc. etc.. It's not the nanny state, the state that tries and fails to care for you. It feels more like a formulaic mess written by a lame, passionless "How to" Author of State.

US politics is phoned-in via, "The Idiot's Guide", but (surprisingly) most constituents aren't total idiots. In fact, time and time again, it was not our intellect that was challenged.

It was our trust that was challenged, and now it’s nearly gone. We trusted government to tell us what was going on in given situations. That didn't work. We trusted government to at least take care of things we couldn't possibly address as individuals. That didn't work. We trusted the government to protect us from threats, as they are obligated to, and we got two pointless wars that are draining our budget and increasing our vulnerability, not to mention killing scores of innocent people. We trusted government to stop fixing pretend problems in lieu of our real concerns, or to at least succeed in fixing the fiction. Didn't happen, and at present, we can't imagine it happening. Ever.

Now, while government and collective action in general normally fails to succeed in stellar fashion, it appears we've reached our saturation point (or a "tipping point" if you prefer). We know governance is hard. We also know that we bare some blame, but not really. One person can't fix a nation's problems (Ahhem... Chiding myself here for my own Obama-mania), so you can't really blame each individual voter. Perhaps you can blame a group, but then you're not talking about persons; you're talking about an electorate, and an electorate is managed by the Parties, not vice versa. In all, people are sick of the Parties, the process, and they're ready to puke. You can tell, because our faces are red and quivering. Most of what's coming out of our mouths resembles acid and bile.

What I've described is an intense, pervasive sense of negativity. It's anger! So it sounds like people are not really very flexible with their ideology as I claimed above. But let's consider this little nugget about ideology:

Ideology is not simply what we cling to. Ideology is mainly the default set of considerations which emerge when encountering, determining, or shaping one's own actions in the face of something new or inherently problematic. In practice, ideology helps guide tough decisions; it is the product of our due internal deliberations over how we think/feel reality ought to be, and therefore, the way we will attempt to make reality when new or challenging situations present such an opportunity. Political ideals then, in the highest abstract sense, are often the fall-back option for an absence of social or economic precedent.

You may also call this Religion, but not necessarily. Deities and supernatural phenomena are not always involved in ideology. Some are secular.

Ideology will, therefore, also become encoded into material reality as an apparent empirical reality. Take for example the different ways in which nations of different ideological slants have established unique collective methods for dealing with the constantly reemerging challenges presented by individual's bowel movements (Go to Youtube and type "Zizek Toilet Ideology". Don't worry. No nasty pictures.). So then, when one reaches the point where their material reality no longer reflects their default options, they either: A) panic and rush back into their den (denial); B) they adopt another existing ideology; or C) they fashion a new ideology from what's left of the previous junk.

I agree that there is a lot of A and B going on. No doubt. This always happens in uncertain times amidst poor economic conditions. But I'm also encouraged by the rising tide of option C. Now, I say that the emergent ideological thrust is Libertarian, because it’s the best word to describe what I see. I encounter this common thread:

The people I talk to sound sincere when saying they want government out of everything, including foreign nation building projects. They want a prosperous economy where individuals can work hard and live well, but they distinguish themselves from big spending Keynesian and/or trickle-down economists. They want basic security for their family and neighborhoods, but they see no need to tap your phone or "Sacrifice Freedom to protect Liberty". They want the shell of the Union in place as a guide for interstate commerce, but they want localized power in more immediately impacting decisions. They dislike corporations, and while they are skeptical of socialism, they feel that the people who represent the backbone of the economy, the workers and small business owners, should be rewarded for their diligence and production. The list may go on, but these are my favorite highlights.

In all, while people are struggling to articulate this thread (and are failing to rather miserably) under a unified coalition, this does not mean it isn't a serious contender. As I see it, the problem is not that people don't know what they want. The problem is that, since they are so adapted to communicating their political goals in the context of the dying paradigm, they are unable to communicate the emergent one. Emerging paradigms are of course not communicated until our actions and experiences allow them to be articulated. Further, while all of the emergent aims may not be totally plausible, no ideological framework is. Look, if we prodded each person long enough, we would find a host of ridiculous inconsistencies and total impossibilities in everyone's ideological foundation. So you can't expect rational sense from established paradigms, let alone emerging ideas. The emerging Party will look like tomfoolery to all that predate it, and therefore, the new one almost always smacks of populism.

Keeping this in mind, as a student and a fan of ideologies far and wide, I gotta say I like a lot of this populist-Libertarian stuff. It sure as hell beats the current GOP, sounds better than the self-righteous "Progressives", and presents more back-bone than the Dems. As some of the current numbers indicate, many prefer these ideas over those of the current ruling party.

But the fact that these ideas are both populist and similar to a previously established ideology (Libertarianism) does not mean they are a mere rehash. I am hopeful that, within some time between the next ten to twenty years, a solid alternative Party will become mainstream. It's not likely to be the Greens or the Libertarians though, because they are too closely associated with what folks are trying to escape. But, if the Reps and Dems fail to rebrand effectively and soon, they will both be dead in the blink of an historical eye. The Reps will likely die first, but the Dems aren't inspiring confidence as they bungle yet another mandate.

In any event, while the ideals I described above were once the domain of Republicans, they are no longer. Really, neither of these Parties give a damn about helping the nation. For them, each unprecedented event and each difficult challenge is not a chance to better your life, but a chance for them to take it to their enemies and consolidate power. The Dems want to take it to the so called "enemies of human decency", whereas Republicans, while claiming to fight for the country, take it to the enemies of their power ambitions, whoever they are, wherever they may be.

In case you couldn't tell, I'm personally more in line with so called Liberals, and I suppose I'm a little "Progressive" (But I think that's a stupid word. Who isn't for "Progress"?). I certainly believe in government, and while there are certainly countless examples of government incompetence and outright failure, I think history indicates that we often need it to get involved in our lives -- to some degree. I think we will continue to need it until the Nation State evaporates and we figure out how to live in luxurious communes and enjoy perpetual peace.

Further, I feel that more conservative folk often forget that, even though they are a present day conservative, their status quo ideals are often times a product yesterday's liberal struggles. These struggles were damn hard for a lot of people, their results have improved the quality of life, and I think that, by automatically writing off the idea of reform with the fading ink of today's well worn pens, many conservatives do a disservice to the spirit that wrote the norms to which they currently cling.

My bias clearly stated, I'll still say that the current GOP is the big, nihilistic elephant in the room. I'm glad to see that people are into restoring what was at one time the bedrock of Republican ideals, but I'm sorry to have to tell y'all that the Republican Party is nearly dead. Are there still people in office who are called "Republicans"? Yes. Are they holding true to the core ideals that Party supposedly stands for? Not a chance.

It's time for a third Party to emerge, and I think one is. Right now, we call them Independents, or in some cases, Moderates. I don't care if we keep three Parties, make five new ones, or kill one off to make room for their replacements. I just think it's time for these populist-Libertarians to upstage their Republican and Democratic masters in this bullshit game. Assert your presence. Not by Tea Parties, not by a rally. That was the 1700s and 1900s respectively. It's the 21st century folks, and we have 21st century problems in the face of 21st century goals we can achieve by 21st century means.

But I'm not one of you new guys. I'm a Lib. So at present, don't expect the answer from me. I can see that the Dem v Rep Party is almost over, but no one can tell me where the After Party is yet. I am, however, quite interested in receiving your invitation once you are willing and able to align under a coherent purpose.