Tucson as a symptom of our sickness

With the recent bloodbath in Tucson, we are left to consider once again how coarse and offensive much of our political rhetoric has become. We must consider the climate that has been created by people in this culture--some of them, unfortunately, political office holders themselves.

In recent years, I've become much more cynical about the role (or lack thereof) of reasoned discourse in our society. It's all about looking good and giving people a certain feeling. Since Obama was elected, those feelings have certainly included irrational anger, directed toward our Muslim, Nazi, Socialist President. The whole effort has been disgusting, and, in my view, more toxic than anything we've heard in the last few decades. Although there is not a direct causal link between this toxic discourse and the Tucson shootings, all of us have a responsibility to do what we can to create a climate in which people do not succumb to demagoguery and act out their perverse beliefs. (Shootings at abortion clinics are another sad example.)

Mario Cuomo's most famous statement is "You campaign in poetry. You govern in prose." Mr. Obama seems to have taken that idea to heart, perhaps to a fault. Now more than ever, we need a poet who can govern--someone who can, with his or her passionate and inspiring rhetoric--take us to a new place, with a new understanding of what public service is all about, what it means to be fully human, and what our highest ideals should be. Barack Obama has a unique opportunity to be that person, and I hope that he can summon his considerable rhetorical skills to make this a nation of which we can all be proud. Unfortunately, however, this week is going to be a national week of mourning. Tucson is a symptom of our collective sickness.

Narcissism and social media

I continue to think about an essay in Time magazine regarding Facebook--Mark Zuckerberg was Time's "Person of the Year" for 2010. In this essay, Richard Stengel argues that "All social media involve a mixture of narcissism and voyeurism."

The statement may be true, but it's also a little depressing. It suggests that if we have any interest in social media, it's either because we are obsessed with ourselves, or obsessed with snooping into other people's lives. Either way, it doesn't sound real healthy.

As this relates to those silly people who keep blogs (ContentiousIntrovert comes to mind), the "narcissism" part is haunting. Are blogs just a way for people to stroke their own ego and pretend that what they are thinking is somehow important and worth noting?

On the one hand, like lots of other people, I simply want to know that at some level, I'm heard, and I'm recognized. On the other hand, I am keenly aware that it's presumptuous to think that I have something to say that's worth hearing in the first place. This tension is also evident in my world with respect to "marketing"--I recognize the need to promote who you are and what you do, but I am, in the end, uncomfortable telling the world about it. So, I have a blog that I seldom mention; I've written a textbook that I seldom promote; and I accomplish things, often modest, that give me a little glow inside but stay largely internalized. It's as if I want the world to see me, but at the same time I hate asking to be seen. Go figure. It's a conundrum that has lurked in the back of my mind for basically my entire life--which, now that it's 2011, seems like a pretty long time.