I'm not a big fan of partisanship. That's probably not surprising since I've never joined a political party. But I understand the human need for individuals to join organizations that tend to be comprised of other like-minded people. This is true whether it's a religious group like a church, or a values-oriented group like a fitness organization of some kind, or a political party which espouses a particular political philosophy.
With that said, I have a real problem with hyper-partisanship. That's because it blinds people to both the good aspects of candidates of opposing parties as well as to the failings in their own candidates and/or their positions on issues. Then, they just "dig in," often willing to defend the indefensible much like the fans of one sports team will rail against an umpire's call even when the evidence is there that it was a good call. This is the kind of thing that has led people on the left, and later on the right, to respectively loathe both President Bush and President Obama without much in the way of rational analyses to support those feelings.
That's why, when choosing a candidate, I've always preferred common sense and competence over ideology, as well as pragmatism over an unreasonable all-or-nothing approach to legislating.
But there are a couple of things that are even more important. One is mental, emotional, and psychological health and stability in our leaders. The other is not having some sense of grandiosity that manifests itself in unbridled ambition. The sheer number of past and present dictators all around the world who have laid waste to their countries as well as their neighbors is a testament to that fact. The ambitions of those men combined with their paranoia and their unhealthy state of mind has resulted in hundreds of millions of deaths and the kind of destruction that even major natural disasters never cause.
America, however, has been extremely lucky in this regard. Despite the hyperbolic statements of hyper-partisans, America has never suffered from being ruled by dictators, tyrants, or truly irrational leaders. Our Constitution has a lot to do with that, of course. So has our long-standing history of a peaceful transition of power which, since FDR, means that no president can serve more than two of his/her own terms in office.The long primary selection process that winnows the field over time is also part of the reason. But that doesn't mean that we've never had presidents who haven't suffered from mental illness while in office.
Abraham Lincoln had terrible bouts of what in his day was termed melancholy. Today, it would be diagnosed as clinical depression.
In the modern era, both LBJ and Nixon had relatively serious emotional and psychological issues during their times in office. In the case of LBJ, it was at least partly due to the Vietnam War. It resulted in Johnson refusing to run for a second term. After leaving office in January 1969, he actually grew out his hair into what would today be called a mullet, and he ultimately died at a relatively young age only 4 years and 2 days after leaving office.
In Nixon's case, his paranoia and his penchant for compiling an enemies list led to a break in at the Democratic HQ which ultimately led to his resignation as his and his staff's crimes eventually came to light. He even had an emotional breakdown in the presence of Henry Kissinger prior to his resignation. But, it took years in office for these men to reach that point.
Below is a video of Trump giving a short speech of less than 16 minutes to the CIA on his very first full day in office. Personally, I was uncomfortable while watching it, and I was sincerely unnerved after having seen it. Trump's seeming inability to stay on topic isn't even the major problem. Watch his facial expressions. Listen to his grandiosity. It's like a train wreck. If watching Trump's "performance" doesn't cause you to question his state of mind and consequently doesn't make you nervous, or at least uncomfortable, I can't help but wonder if you've lost your objectivity due to hyper-partisanship.
In closing, let me say this. I'd be willing to bet that questioning Trump's state of mind and his mental health is a topic of conversation at the highest levels of both major political parties.
Trump's full speech at CIA headquarters - The Washington Post
With that said, I have a real problem with hyper-partisanship. That's because it blinds people to both the good aspects of candidates of opposing parties as well as to the failings in their own candidates and/or their positions on issues. Then, they just "dig in," often willing to defend the indefensible much like the fans of one sports team will rail against an umpire's call even when the evidence is there that it was a good call. This is the kind of thing that has led people on the left, and later on the right, to respectively loathe both President Bush and President Obama without much in the way of rational analyses to support those feelings.
That's why, when choosing a candidate, I've always preferred common sense and competence over ideology, as well as pragmatism over an unreasonable all-or-nothing approach to legislating.
But there are a couple of things that are even more important. One is mental, emotional, and psychological health and stability in our leaders. The other is not having some sense of grandiosity that manifests itself in unbridled ambition. The sheer number of past and present dictators all around the world who have laid waste to their countries as well as their neighbors is a testament to that fact. The ambitions of those men combined with their paranoia and their unhealthy state of mind has resulted in hundreds of millions of deaths and the kind of destruction that even major natural disasters never cause.
America, however, has been extremely lucky in this regard. Despite the hyperbolic statements of hyper-partisans, America has never suffered from being ruled by dictators, tyrants, or truly irrational leaders. Our Constitution has a lot to do with that, of course. So has our long-standing history of a peaceful transition of power which, since FDR, means that no president can serve more than two of his/her own terms in office.The long primary selection process that winnows the field over time is also part of the reason. But that doesn't mean that we've never had presidents who haven't suffered from mental illness while in office.
Abraham Lincoln had terrible bouts of what in his day was termed melancholy. Today, it would be diagnosed as clinical depression.
In the modern era, both LBJ and Nixon had relatively serious emotional and psychological issues during their times in office. In the case of LBJ, it was at least partly due to the Vietnam War. It resulted in Johnson refusing to run for a second term. After leaving office in January 1969, he actually grew out his hair into what would today be called a mullet, and he ultimately died at a relatively young age only 4 years and 2 days after leaving office.
In Nixon's case, his paranoia and his penchant for compiling an enemies list led to a break in at the Democratic HQ which ultimately led to his resignation as his and his staff's crimes eventually came to light. He even had an emotional breakdown in the presence of Henry Kissinger prior to his resignation. But, it took years in office for these men to reach that point.
Below is a video of Trump giving a short speech of less than 16 minutes to the CIA on his very first full day in office. Personally, I was uncomfortable while watching it, and I was sincerely unnerved after having seen it. Trump's seeming inability to stay on topic isn't even the major problem. Watch his facial expressions. Listen to his grandiosity. It's like a train wreck. If watching Trump's "performance" doesn't cause you to question his state of mind and consequently doesn't make you nervous, or at least uncomfortable, I can't help but wonder if you've lost your objectivity due to hyper-partisanship.
In closing, let me say this. I'd be willing to bet that questioning Trump's state of mind and his mental health is a topic of conversation at the highest levels of both major political parties.
Trump's full speech at CIA headquarters - The Washington Post
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