CNN reports tonight on a survey done related to people’s opinions about the separation of church and state. A survey. 219 years after the ratification of the Constitution. In the midst of a “War on Terror” that’s being fought against theocracies. And it’s close: we’re still split almost 50/50 on whether the church should have a political voice.

How is it possible that we are bombarded daily with news about how foreign governments in the Middle East and in Asia (think Pakistan) struggle to control legitimized religious factions, yet we are barely holding them at bay in our own country?

Don’t answer that, it’s rhetorical; the answer is that people have a darn good knack at believing—strenuously—whatever happens to be in their personal best interest, regardless of what’s best for “people overall.”

I hear people complain all day about corporate politics, but I gotta tell ya, what I see in business ain’t nuthin’ compared to the political land grab we tolerate in our governing body day in and day out. If you’re having trouble dealing with ambiguity, it’s likely because you’re still a bit too idealistic in your belief that people will do what they “should” do, as opposed to “what’s good for them.”

The human condition simply isn’t magnanimous.

John Adams had it right when he included a line in the Massachusetts constitution about government’s responsibility to educate the people. Because until education—real education, the kind administered by super-qualified, highly-motivated, and appropriately compensated teachers, as opposed to the fakey kind education that is supposedly measured by a series of standardized tests—becomes a priority, we are destined to struggle with issues we have no business debating in the first place; the only answer to our inherently self-interested ways is to be versed in history. History gives us a chance to do what the Whopper does in War Games: play through all the scenarios for ourselves so we can see the true consequences of our actions… when we try to project into the future, our self-interest blinds us and skews our perspective. Only by looking backward do we seem to learn how to expand our perspective.

Want a better life? Read a book.

Want a better world? Read a book about history.

Posted under Personal, Current Trends