Better and Worse

A thought on disagreement

This morning I listened to the argument that the purpose of our politics, and in particular our national politics, is not to create policy. Rather, its goal is to be a forum for bargaining and accommodation. As an example, Congress should be the place for our national discussion. It is where our elected representatives speak to the defining issues of our day and do the frustratingly and imperfect work of bringing disagreement into a messy resolution.

Another way to consider this is to recognize that we are all wrong. We do not have the answers, we do not have perfect solutions. Everything we propose is flawed. The benefit of discussion with others is that through that process we come up not with the perfect, but with the better.

When we don’t have such as process, or when the institutions we have traditionally relied upon for this purpose fail us, the ugliness spills over into other areas of life not well-suited for such a reason. Politics becomes everything, and mars church, family, music, and little-league games.

We like the clear, black-and-white nature of right and wrong. But perhaps we are better off thinking about better and worse.