Two-Party Monopoly
By Mowahid Hussain Shah
Elections 2016 present two of the most unpopular choices ever for the US Presidency. Is this the best America has to offer? Many have been repelled and embarrassed by the distasteful tone of the race for the White House and its lack of decorum. According to CBS News, this campaign is “more about insults than ideas.”
The long stretch for the No 1 slot has incentivized the dormant and dark forces of racism and xenophobia. It has been a catalyst for open expression of bigotry. It shows that a society can materially flourish, yet, at the same time, be prone to spiritual impoverishment.
Intent to hate cannot make a society great. Execution of intent can only be with consent of the general public.
In particular, the Republican Party has tried to appeal to people’s baser instincts. Instead of trying to reach for a higher ground, it went low and kept low. And that is how Trump happened.
The Democrats’ choice, too, doesn’t suggest rectitude, dogged as it has been by persistent perceptions of untrustworthiness. Under Hillary’s foreign policy watch, the Mideast unraveled. What happens in the Middle East does not stay in the Middle East. In its aftermath, old allies like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey, are being converted into near-foes. Richard Nixon must be rolling in his grave.
To have a hate-monger and a race-baiter be at the pinnacle of US political life reflects on the state of US public sentiment. It is classic indicia of a society in slow decline.
Yet, despite unmistakable signs, those who are in it do not recognize the signposts to a downward slope. Otherwise, pro-active and remedial steps would be undertaken. But these blind spots are omnipresent and unattended. Not too long ago, it was said that the sun would never set on the British Empire. But post-Brexit, Great Britain is now a shrunken island, with Scotland threatening to secede.
For decades now, the Republicans and Democrats have failed to throw up fresh leadership with fresh medicine and fresh vision. It’s a consequence of the duopoly of the two-party monopoly, which constricts and restricts choices. It operates, in effect, to enclose sameness and staleness.
Come January, Obama leaves the White House but change will not come to the White House. It’s likely to be the third term of the stained Clinton Presidency.
The US system needs a serious re-think.
People learn from leaders and what they are learning is that it is OK to behave badly, display bigotry, and vent hate. Noxious behavior at the top tends to trickle down. The mindset, which this conduct promotes, can only shrivel society. Once the genie of hate is unleashed, it is much harder to bottle it back.
Unavoidable questions linger about Muslim placement in the West. Why has it been so easy to field a false narrative about Muslims? Were the attacks that difficult to predict or prevent? Were Muslims not prepared because they were insufficiently aware of what was happening? Were Muslims frightened into inaction? Didn’t it make the task of maligning the marginalized easier? Can Muslims commit now to counter it?
