Ideas and Responsibility

Quote of the day:
“Diversity in friendships serves the exact same purpose as diversity in investments--to keep one blip from upending your entire world.”
--Carolyn Hax

Columnist William Kristol recently wrote about the difference between discussing ideas and proposals and actually governing. He suggested that Democrats are good at the former, while Republicans are good at the latter.

While I don’t agree with the party distinction, I think Kristol makes an important point.

It is far easier to criticize and make supremely reasonable proposals from outside any organization that it is from inside. This is especially true for government and other highly political organizations.

I’ve worked at several levels inside two such organizations. That experience leads me to question the sanity of those who run for public office.

Public officials at every level are blasted by someone no matter what they do or don’t do. There are critics everywhere with different points of view, and many of them let their thoughts be known, sometimes in impolite ways.

Those who don’t have to deal with this relentless criticism--from within the organization and well as without--have no problem joining the chorus on one side or the other. Those who don’t have to face near-impossible budget decisions--such as whether to layoff teachers or police, or whether to raise taxes--have no problem making the decisions, often with just their own interests in mind.

Things are always easier to run from the outside. From there the answers are clear. Maybe if we say them or shout them enough, the boneheaded mayor/president/leader/manager will finally do something, we say.