An Intensive Era of Political Self-Indulgence

[SAMtheBushman]

Self-indulgence in politics has always been there. In recent years, however, you cannot get away from it, no matter how hard you try. It is everywhere, right from the top, down to local politics. Perhaps it is the 24/7 news cycle or some other subtle phenomena finally taking hold, or perhaps the issues are more intractable, or perhaps it is our own biases that encourage politicians to use these techniques.

The most recent example and what promoted me to write this was the public witch burning of Supervisor Eugene Delgadio at a recent Board of Supervisors meeting. No need to go into the specifics, they are in your local papers.

Anybody who pays attention in this County knows Delgardio, especially those on the Board. Delgadio knows who he is. He will tell you if you ask him. He is no phony, at least not, with regard to what he believes in. He is a real person, representative of many people in this community/country, but in this particular set of circumstances, he was wrong. However, in a philosophical sense we are all wrong, just on different subjects and at different times --No need for histrionics.

The self-indulgence, expressed in this case as self-righteousness regarding Supervisor Delgardio’s actions by the Loudoun BOS, was excessive and child like. To express outrage that someone could think the way Delgario does is hypocrisy, but it is especially disingenuous for people who spend hours and hours listening to other people’s opinions. Supervisor McGrimsey to her credit was the only one who approached this in a responsible way, pointing out "why" Delgario’s’ position was wrong, but not indulging herself in self-righteousness.

Self-righteousness is just one form of self-indulgence. Politicians today have a complete tool bag of these techniques to enhance their own personas. These techniques are proven successful for leading limited culture groups.

On the other hand, people who know who they are and consequently have no need to enhance their personas this way, have gravitas and can lead broader groups of people. It is sometimes called character. Trying to build a persona by telling people what you are not, and using other people as a strawman, is a cheap way to cover shortcomings, but somehow it works, at least, in the short run.


A really Pollyannaish suggestion: perhaps Supervisor McGrimsey could suggest leadership training for the Board. It would be a start.

[Brian]

Hi Sam,

Are you talking about this?

I agree with you -- unlike many politicians, with Delgaudio you know exactly where he stands. I might not agree with his positions, but I don't need to parse politician-speak to understand them.

And he just announced that he is going to run for reelection (in November 2011), so if his constituents aren't pleased with his politics they can vote for somebody else.

Thanks for your periodic posts on community and local politics.

Brian

[SAMtheBushman]

Hi Sam,

Are you talking about this?

No, It was about that subject matter but the article I was referring too was in the most recent Loudoun Independent and came during a meeting after the one you are referencing, when the battle was already over. I do not see it on-line.

The issue was already settled at the meeting in your reference, but for some reason that had to do with a small goofy thing that Delgado did subsequent to that meeting, the self-righteousness came out and they used this next meeting to try burn Delgardio at the stack.

This was not smart. By this time, it should have been over. To her credit, Supervisor McGrimsey try to right the course of the meeting, by pointing out why Delgardio’s position was wrong and then move on, but self-righteousness seems to be a powerful force.