Perseverance in the political game

I’ve been thinking about this post for the past few days. I don’t normally read blogs like TigerHawk, but I think he brings up an important point. The inspiration comes from an Andrew Sullivan reader, who laments how Jeremiah Wright might block Obama’s eventual nomination:

I’ll just put that out there. If Obama is done in by this whole Wright thing I am done with politics. I can’t invest myself in something that is so sure to disappoint me time and time and time again…

TigerHawk, using an example from his own youth, properly puts this Gen-Yer in place: “Democracy requires the continuing participation of the losers, and if you do not have the stones to play the game again the next time then you are part of the problem, not part of the solution.”

One can draw an easy parallel to sports. In baseball, my game of choice, only eight teams out of 30 make the playoff every year. So what, are the fans of the other 22 teams supposed to give up? What about fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have not seen their team finish above .500 since 1992?

Yes, some fans will jump off the wagon after a poor season or two. But those fans typically don’t add much, anyway. They’re fair weather and annoying. I remember the fall of 1996, when the number of Yankees hats in school tripled from the beginning of the school year into October, when the Yankees won the World Series for the first time in 18 years.

It’s the same concept in politics. If you can’t stand your side losing, then you’re better off staying away. What you feel is “right” doesn’t always win. It’s the perseverance of those who truly believe in something that helps push things forward. If someone is willing to be “done with politics” after a defeat, well, they probably don’t bring many ideas to the table, anyway. Or at least any with long lasting value.

Just remember: For every idea or ideal you have, there is a counter which might be just as valid. They are both presented to the public, and are voted on — either through an election or a vote by the representatives we elect. Yes, the presentation of those ideas and ideals is muddled by modern politics. But we must weather the storm if we’re to push these ideas and ideals forward.