Front Door Politics

'Let not him who is houseless pull down the house of another, but let him work diligently and build one for himself, thus by example assuring that his own shall be safe from violence when built.'

(Abraham Lincoln, 1864)

I am deliberately taking this quote out of context (Lincoln really was talking about houses!) because I cannot find another quote which so eloquently tells us not to build ourselves up by knocking others down. I use it as a metaphor for the dangers of putting people down, and its ability to have the opposite effect of tarnishing our own reputations.

It was election day today and someone came to my front door trying to sway my vote, when I said I'd voted they then tried to sway my vote in the mayoral election. How? By bad-mouthing the other major candidate. Although I was already aware of the many faults of the candidate they were putting down, their manner of  argument was making me feel less likely to vote for the candidate they were representing. 

I told them I didn't appreciate the cheap-shot strategy of discrediting the opposition. 'But', they said, 'Its true!' I said I already knew about what the candidate had done, it wasn't that I was disputing - it was the unprofessional manner in which they were presenting their case. The vocabulary they used was reactionary, incendiary and a poor representation of their political agenda. It was what I would expect from cheap-shot tabloid tactics, but not on my door-step.

The worst part of the interaction was that in all the arguments the person put forward, at no point in time did they describe the benefits or advantages of choosing their party candidate but instead spent all their time putting the other candidate down.

It may be true in sport that the best defence is a good offence, but it shouldn't hold true in life. Stand up for what you believe, tell me your values and ideals, but don't build yourself up by putting others down. It says more about you than them. 

Don't tell me what you're not...show me what you are. 

Lincoln, A. (1864)  Reply to a Committee from the Workingmen's Association of New York," March 21, 1864 (Complete Works, X, 53-54) cited in Abraham Lincoln quarterly. [Vol. 5, no. 8] Collection: Abraham Lincoln Association Serials
 

Biscuit Politics

As Tony Benn would ask:

How would you feel if you went to the dentist and they said I'm not a dentist myself, haven't learned anything about dentistry, or even read a book on it but my dads a dentist so I'll call myself a dentist? 

Tony Benn, 2011

Tony Benn considered inheriting a title in a similar vein, so renounced his title of Viscount on that basis, which it why it's surprising to read in the Guardian that his son Stephen, is now reclaiming this heriditary peerage.

Speaking at rally in Trafalgar Square 2011

Sadly, he hasn't inherited his father's other title - 'socialist'! No that's something you have to work at and believe in and isn't just a badge you stick on when you fancy it.

Biscuit politics. They are most secure in the shop, labelled, in the packet or box or biscuit tin, with all the other biscuits. On their own, in the hands of the public, it doesn't matter which biscuit you choose, if you hold them in hot water long enough they will break and fall, whether they are chocolate or plain, they all create a splash before finally sinking to the bottom.

Tony Ben wasn't a biscuit, he was the biscuit tin and now he's gone, unfortunately, some of the biscuits have now fallen apart and are just a pile of crumbs. Try dunking that in your tea!