POLITICS ISN’T WHAT YOU THINK IT IS

© 1987 by Stuart Norman


Appeared in RFD #50, Spring ‘87, “ Rejoicing in Flamboyant Diversity.”
This article still speaks for itself. It’s part of a primer on basic politics.


        I’ve been political editor of RFD and writing this column for over three years. But I have yet to speak of what politics really is. So few political writers do. There are vast misconceptions about politics. People think it is ideology, government, legislation, electioneering/campaigning, underhanded power seeking, etc. But it is none of those things, yet they are all contained within it. Perhaps I can broaden our understanding.
        What is politics? One British wag of the last century called it “the art of the possible.” And so it is. Politics is a word that conjures up many emotions. It is not an obscene word, although some people would like to think it is.
        The ancient Greeks thought of humans as political animals (zoon politikon) - that which distinguishes humans from all other animals. Politics derives from the Greek word for city, polis; it literally is the life of the city. Thus there is the “body politic,” or society. It includes the entire network of social interactions; thus all human interactions are political in nature and everyone plays politics. No one can be truly apolitical. There can be private, as well as public political acts. The personal is political. One’s politics does not differ from another’s, but their ideologies, strategies and systems do. When we say we don’t like someone’s politics we don’t like the other’s ideology, beliefs, actions or endorsement of a particular politician or political system.
        Politics is a reflection of the social structure, the way any given society is organized and functions. It is ways of achieving goals, practical solutions to social and individual problems, rules and regulations (laws) of social behavior. Thus politics is simply a way of relating. And there are many different styles.
        Politics is also the attempt to influence others to a point of view and course of action. It functions by favoritism. One is more inclined to accept, believe or be persuaded by a friend or acquaintance than a stranger, unless by an authority figure. Favors are given by friends, who expect them in return. And politics is based in kinship, whether by blood ties (family) or like values (friends). Thus politics is also based in belonging to the like-minded group who will keep promises to each other. Loyalty to the group is bought by favors and kept promises. Others, strangers, etc., are outsiders; they do not belong, cannot be trusted, and they can be viewed as lesser beings, evil ones, enemies.
        However, politics has to deal with disagreements. Thus over the course of human history politics has become more sophisticated in handling this aspect of human interaction. There are ways to compromise, manipulate, negotiate, convince, argue - all to gain an advantage. And when these break down there is fighting, the escalation of entrenched position vs. opposition, the adversarial relationship taken to its extreme. But politics doesn’t necessarily have to be the history of warfare, nor totally adversarial.
        Most of the political systems with which we are familiar are hierarchical and authoritarian. As with many animal species, humans have a pecking order of dominance and submission, but we don’t have to. Yet there are always leaders and followers.
        Politics is a way of functioning in a society, a way of jockeying for position and power. Everyone wants power and the prestige that is associated with it. We want to know and associate with those having power and influence, the authority figures, so that some of that power will accrue to us, like manna. We need a sense of power to be fully functioning human beings. We live in fluctuating networks of power in constant flow. And the way to maximize power for individuals, groups and the society as a whole is to be politically astute, that is, to have skills and knowledge considered to be political. The fastest way up that ladder is to offer favors to those in power and hope they will return the favor. It is that simple.
        We want to belong to the group having the most power, but what if we do not agree with the beliefs and goals of that group? Then we become outsiders, not socially approved, but perhaps tolerated. Then the adversarial component of politics arises and the conflict for power begins in earnest, first by influencing others to your beliefs to increase your power and support, then comes the direct challenge. It could be resolved by election or by revolution.

        It is an ideological fiction that religion can be separated from culture/society or politics. Religion is culture. It is the myth, the underlying philosophical foundation of any culture. Thus political behavior is based in the cultural and religious beliefs. It should be no surprise that we address the Judeo-Christian god by the authoritarian title, “Lord." Religion is the ritualistic, outward form that reifies and supports culture. Mass pageants and ceremonies unify the people who participate, whether they are called religious or political. So of course politics is religious. Religions operate by political means to achieve political ends. Religion is the prime cultural institution and it plays in many guises.
        By its very nature religion is collectivist, unifying and conformist. The individual is powerless against it unless he/she learns and practices magic. So even magic, by its opposition to religion, is political in nature, notwithstanding the underlying spirituality, which in this analysis is superfluous. For example, a particular denomination of Christian church may have been separated from the state in the United States, but the Judeo-Christian religion has not. It is our operating system. And with that dying because it no longer fits or fulfills our current lives, another religion is growing to take its place. Now we need to input new cultural myths, more humane myths, myths that can empower everyone, and establish a new political system.
        For all the high-minded political ideas humanity has held through the centuries, the reality of politics is simply favoritism and kinship, from family to friends to tribe to nation. Either you are friend or foe, you belong or not, you are in a position of privilege or denied basic rights. It is not a question of any ultimate right or wrong. Such it ever was in all human cultures, and probably will remain so. Only by restructuring cultural myths for dispersal of power can we hope to create a more equitable political system.

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