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7 Single-Party State?
Like this blog, society is about positive
relationships among empathetic people. Today's post is another
encouragement to diversity and pluralism.
Lack of empathy leads to adversarial
polarization, which is a primary threat to domestic tranquility in the family
or in the state. Polarization is a path to gridlock, which is a barrier to
progress. A two-party political system is inherently an invitation to
polarization. Shame on the two-party system!
Should the two-party system be replaced?
The one-party alternative typically poses even worse prospects. A very limited
reference to the Soviet Union might illustrate a shortcoming of having the
Communist Party essentially coincident with the State. History (discussed here) recorded political jockeying before
Nikita Khrushchev became premiere of the Soviet Union. Instead of being
expressed as variant political party platforms, different viewpoints were
driven by hostile factions within the party / state. Instead of a democratic
selection process, there was essentially a power play among political actors,
producing a mixed scorecard of favors and repression. Victims released from
some of Stalin's harsh policies probably felt more tolerance than did
Hungarians and Ukrainians. The single-party state was not a homogeneous
panacea with equal treatment of all.
In principle, political parties within a
democracy are more functional than factions within a power-driven state. For
example, if I rebel against a state policy of slavery or capital punishment,
the state and I both suffer a degree of mutual destruction. The extremes of
destruction are pogroms (against individuals) and revolutions (against
states). On the other hand, if I rebel against a party platform on either
issue, I retain options for other party affiliations while remaining in good
standing with the state. Functional democracy avoids forceful suppression
while it accommodates the freedom of judgment expressed in the above Wishy-Washy
post of November 14. As the test of time, applied with
proper checks and balances, weeds out improper party platforms, the state
itself continues constructive organic evolution. Hurrah for a party system!
The next post will suggest a way to rise
above the limitations of the one-party and two-party systems.
Being For Others Blog copyright © 2019 Kent Busse
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