Folksy American Optimism & Chutzpah

Sullied Soapbox: American politics are quite presumptuous in referring to the two major philosophies/schools of governance as "parties" - they have little to celebrate in light of divisional aspirations tempered by constant saber-rattling and toothless, mindless, and cross-partisan cannibalism.

A recent NPR Hidden Brain podcast has the host and guest discuss political hobbyists compared to political activists and how the former practice settles for emotional fulfillment whereas the latter utilizes emotional investment to enact change at the local level (which honestly gives far more power to the voter and allows for a greater locus of control in the form of addressing actionable concerns). As with many podcasts, investing in the time to listen to and absorb the content pays dividends, but not everyone has that commodity. Time takes its time all of the time.

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/10/804612601/passion-isnt-enough-the-rise-of-political-hobbyism-in-the-united-states

This grassroots mindset runs contrary to American grandiosity. "Go big or go home" finds its employ in exercise, business, sports, and myriad other contexts. To enact worthwhile change in the world, "shooting for the moon" (and perhaps "landing among the stars," as the reductive aphorism goes) holds greater cultural bearing than smaller but more immediately-effective efforts. "A City upon a Hill" remains a national ideal nearly 400 years after the fact. The construct is a conflicted one: the sermon (and the fact that it is labeled as such) entrenches it in religious ideology that places aforementioned (specifically Christian) theology as the standard viewpoint but combines with a more basic human desire to be included in a community. Cities imply a sense of communal harmony that places petty grievances aside for the betterment of the general population; hilltops offer broader perspectives for the surrounding locality while looking down on them. "When you are one of us, we shall be as one" is a phrase that just dawned on me, and it is a pervasive sentiment. The best of American practices consider these pseudo-inherent concepts and actively engage in mindful deconstruction with the goal of improved reconstruction. Take care and be well, folks.