Conflicting Visions :: Politics Political Essays

Conflicting Visions Generally, mickle handle common goals. Most of us want poor mint to enjoy higher standards of living, greater traffic safety, fewer wars and more world peace, greater racial harmony, cleaner air and water, and less crime. Despite the point that people concord common goals, more often than non, we see them separate into contentious factions, fighting tooth and nail to promote differing government policies in the note of achieving those commonly held goals. Often the policies whitethorn be unproductive and often have the unintended consequence of sabotaging the goal. Almost always the conflict is centered nearly the means to fulfil goals rather than the goals themselves. A good example of conflict surrounding means is found in the periodic debates over marginal wage and tariffs. Many people profess concern for the welfare of low-skilled workers. To achieve their goal, one group adamantly demands that carnal knowledge legislate higher borderline wages. Another group professing the identical concern, are just as adamant in demanding that Congress not legislate higher nominal wages. Similarly, one group of advocates for greater business opportunities might lobby Congress for higher tariffs and stricter quotas on foreign imports. Another group of people manduction the identical goal will fight against tariffs and quotas and lobby for fewer plow restrictions. How is it that people who share identical goals come to advocate polar turnabout policies? One possible explanation is that they are dishonest and simply promoting their person-to-person interests. Their political strategy is to express concern for the unskilled and greater employment opportunities simply as a ruse to conceal their true schedule higher wages, profits and monopoly wealth. The more interesting question is why do people, who are assumed to be honest, intelligent, selfless and not motivated by a hidden agenda, arrive at polar opposite form _or_ system of gov ernment proposals as a means to achieve commonly shared goals, that may indeed produce polar opposite results? Part of the answer is that they share different visions of how the world works. Consider the effects of different visions by departure back to a time prior to Pythagoras and Ptolemys proofs that the earth was round. Imagine both honest and intelligent people in 1000 B.C. One persons sign come before is that the earth is flat. Based upon that premise, he would argue strenuously it is not possible to sail west from Greece and happen upon the Orient. The other person, whose initial premise is that the world is round, would argue just as strenuously that it is possible to reach the Orient by sailing west from Greece.