LOVE AND POLITICS

Victor Bloom MD

The essence of love is that it is irrational. My beloved is on a higher plane than all other mortals, higher than all women who have ever lived or ever will live. Our children are smarter and better looking than most, and are contributing to a better world. Their children are extraordinarily healthy, precocious and beautiful, and are the hope of the future. My best friend supports a different party than I do. Still, he is not altogether misguided; he means well. We keep a perspective by keeping a sense of humor. A sense of humor is essential to preserving a love relationship, because love relationships can get highly irrational, even stormy and tumultuous at times, but when the dust settles, we get on with life, nurturing our precious loves.

We are nothing until we love and are loved. For some strange reason, aspects of love infiltrate our politics. We firmly believe that our party is the better one, for ourselves, the nation and the world. The other party is questionable and potentially dangerous. Somewhere along the line we choose a party affiliation and stick with it. In unity there is strength. In numbers there is strength. Might makes right. Possession is nine tenths of the law. We want our party to possess the power of the executive, the White House, the Oval Office, be the Commander-in-Chief,.

Our party is not only good for the rich, but also for the poor. Our party knows that what is good for the rich is also good for the nation, the economy and the poor. People who are rich build and create things, buy goods and services, and so many are employed and can also earn money to buy the things they want, and so our economy thrives. Our party knows that when Big Government aids the poor, the poor are worse off, so our party is against Big Government.

The other party throws money at problems, not solving them, but creating an ever larger bureaucracy which does nothing but complicate life needlessly. In order to throw money at problems, they tax us to death, depriving us of our hard-earned money. Our party wants the individuals who have earned the money decide what to do with that money, rather than have Big Government rob us of what is ours.

The other party wants to take advantage and foster the tyranny of the majority, instead of respecting minority rights. They have destroyed standards and our prized meritocracy in order to give advantage to persons who would otherwise be disadvantaged. They think it is fair to take our money and give it to others. They do not like the rich being very rich and think that is why the poor are very poor. They think it is fair to redistribute the wealth.

Our party supports individual initiative and rights. The other party takes away our rights and gives them to others. Our party supports a strong military, to defend our way of life and make us secure, while the other party would make us vulnerable to aggressors and terrorists. We prefer hawks to doves, while they support the spotted owl. We have confidence in the balance of nature while they are obsessed with global warming and holes in the ozone layer.

They say we are hardhearted while they are compassionate. They call us Neanderthals, while they are civilized, modern and forward-looking. They call us prudes for maintaining moral standards, while they support situational morality. They maintain that sexual expression should not be hindered and unwanted pregnancies should be freely disposed of.

We tend to think that every life is precious, even those of the unborn, but they don't think fetuses are persons. On the other hand, we believe in the death penalty, even though a few on death row are really innocent. We tend to think that gays are not so gay and don't belong in the military. They say it is better not to ask and not to tell. We think gays and minorities are like anyone else, but they think they should be treated special.

How do we come to believe what we believe, and feel as we do? Once we have taken sides, the answers to questions come quickly and naturally. We are right and they are wrong. We are smart and they are dumb. We see the right way and they are misguided. Our man has character and integrity, is honest and sincere, while their man is a gesticulating robot who has no principles. They think our man is inexperienced and dumb, an empty suit, a spoiled brat and a former drunk. We think their man is a pompous ass, presumptuous, posturing and lecturing, as if we don't know anything.

Our man makes us feel smart. Their man tries to make us feel dumb. Our man is loveable. Their man is hateful and obnoxious. Our man will become presidential and possibly a great leader, while their man will only lead us down the primrose path. Our man takes the high road. Their man takes the low road.

If their man steals the election, our country will go to hell in a handbasket. If our man steals the election, he would have stolen it fair and square.

Dr Bloom is Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Wayne State University School of Medicine. He is a member of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and on the editorial board of the Wayne County Medical Society. He welcomes comments at his email address--- vbloom@comcast.net.