Democracy has no place in the real world.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But take gravity, for example. Gravity isn't democratic. We all just... fall. No vote, poll or election can change that.
With the Supreme Court ready to consider two cases on gay "marriage" next week, American democracy is set for an important test of its capacity to recognize reality for what it is. And respect it.
Based on recent polls, it's not clear if America is up to task. Take this week's article in the Washington Post. The focus is, "Should gay 'marriage' be legal? What do people think? What do politicians think? What do celebrities think?"
But there's no mention of what marriage is. In other words, we're ignoring the real question. The gay 'marriage' debate shouldn't be a no-holds-barred political free-for-all where everyone both claims to be loving and tolerant and at the same time accuses everyone else of bigotry. This debate is more important than that. It should be a deep study of what marriage is, and what that means for society.
In a nutshell, we need a good, calm, deep reality check.
Things like marriage, things like gravity simply are, whether we like them or not. They're reality. And reality doesn't depend on the will of the people. Votes can decide how to do things, what to allow, what to prohibit. Governments can change what things are called, but they can't change what things are.
The temptation of every democracy is to forget that simple fact. On paper, you can mold reality to fit the whim of the moment. Gravity can be abolished. Never again will children bloody their knees falling off a bike!
Gravity is real. And if you try to ignore that, you fall. Hard.
Take a look at the Washington Post-ABC poll here.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But take gravity, for example. Gravity isn't democratic. We all just... fall. No vote, poll or election can change that.
With the Supreme Court ready to consider two cases on gay "marriage" next week, American democracy is set for an important test of its capacity to recognize reality for what it is. And respect it.
Based on recent polls, it's not clear if America is up to task. Take this week's article in the Washington Post. The focus is, "Should gay 'marriage' be legal? What do people think? What do politicians think? What do celebrities think?"
But there's no mention of what marriage is. In other words, we're ignoring the real question. The gay 'marriage' debate shouldn't be a no-holds-barred political free-for-all where everyone both claims to be loving and tolerant and at the same time accuses everyone else of bigotry. This debate is more important than that. It should be a deep study of what marriage is, and what that means for society.
In a nutshell, we need a good, calm, deep reality check.
Things like marriage, things like gravity simply are, whether we like them or not. They're reality. And reality doesn't depend on the will of the people. Votes can decide how to do things, what to allow, what to prohibit. Governments can change what things are called, but they can't change what things are.
The temptation of every democracy is to forget that simple fact. On paper, you can mold reality to fit the whim of the moment. Gravity can be abolished. Never again will children bloody their knees falling off a bike!
Gravity is real. And if you try to ignore that, you fall. Hard.
Take a look at the Washington Post-ABC poll here.
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