The Fallacy of Compromise
Henry Clay and the Compromise of 1850One of the side stories of this year’s election is whether or not New York Mayor Bloomberg will run for president as a third party candidate. His mantra is an end to "partisan politics." He envisions a Congress in which both sides of the aisle are working together, Republicans and Democrats holding hands, solving the nation’s problems while singing Kum By Yah. Sounds good, but is it?
For your consideration, I believe that our political process needs, and we as citizens of a democracy deserve, a vigorous discussion of the various sides of an issue. Sometimes there is simply no room to compromise, nor would you want one. The old joke that goes Q: “What is a camel?” A: “A horse designed by a committee”, is a perfect example of what a compromise can spawn. When you need a horse, a camel don’t cut it no matter how admirable a beast it might be.
Many of the great philosophical issues that face this nation are not amenable to compromise. Either you want single payer government run national insurance, or you don’t. You either support abortion, or you don’t. You either want amnesty for illegal immigrants, or you don’t. You either want gun control, or you don’t. These are emotionally charged issues that are not easily compromised, each worthy of lengthy, vigorous debate.
On "mega-issues", not only does compromise not work, it can make things worse. Slavery was the subject of numerous compromises from the inception of this nation. Not only did the compromises fail, the issue of slavery ended in the bloodiest war in American history, a war that killed more Americans than all the other American wars combined. The founding fathers, in pursuit of compromise, made a deal that was doomed from its inception. Our nation paid the price for their sins.
Just because the political process cannot reach an obvious compromise, doesn’t mean that resolution of issues won’t eventually come. Whether you agree or not, abortion on demand, through the "implied" constitutional doctrine of Right to Privacy, is settled law in this country. However, the more abhorrent aspects of abortion, such as partial birth abortion, are being resolved through very contentious and painfully slow legislative and judicial processes. The natural ebb and flow of ideas and events takes place not in an atmosphere of compromise, but in one of vehemently strong political positions. These issues don’t resolve themselves over a period of a month or a year, but over decades of angry debate followed by a period of retrospection as the mores of our society change, and new generations of Americans offer a new perspective.
For your consideration, I believe that our political process needs, and we as citizens of a democracy deserve, a vigorous discussion of the various sides of an issue. Sometimes there is simply no room to compromise, nor would you want one. The old joke that goes Q: “What is a camel?” A: “A horse designed by a committee”, is a perfect example of what a compromise can spawn. When you need a horse, a camel don’t cut it no matter how admirable a beast it might be.
Many of the great philosophical issues that face this nation are not amenable to compromise. Either you want single payer government run national insurance, or you don’t. You either support abortion, or you don’t. You either want amnesty for illegal immigrants, or you don’t. You either want gun control, or you don’t. These are emotionally charged issues that are not easily compromised, each worthy of lengthy, vigorous debate.
On "mega-issues", not only does compromise not work, it can make things worse. Slavery was the subject of numerous compromises from the inception of this nation. Not only did the compromises fail, the issue of slavery ended in the bloodiest war in American history, a war that killed more Americans than all the other American wars combined. The founding fathers, in pursuit of compromise, made a deal that was doomed from its inception. Our nation paid the price for their sins.
Just because the political process cannot reach an obvious compromise, doesn’t mean that resolution of issues won’t eventually come. Whether you agree or not, abortion on demand, through the "implied" constitutional doctrine of Right to Privacy, is settled law in this country. However, the more abhorrent aspects of abortion, such as partial birth abortion, are being resolved through very contentious and painfully slow legislative and judicial processes. The natural ebb and flow of ideas and events takes place not in an atmosphere of compromise, but in one of vehemently strong political positions. These issues don’t resolve themselves over a period of a month or a year, but over decades of angry debate followed by a period of retrospection as the mores of our society change, and new generations of Americans offer a new perspective.
So in this election cycle, be wary of those claiming to be “uniters” instead of “dividers”. First of all, they are probably lying. My preference is for somebody who stands for something, and is willing to fight for it from the left or the right. Compromise is often times just another word for lack of leadership, and leadership is what this country needs most of all.
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