I've started to watch the West Wing again. This past weeks' episode was interesting.
The main character wanted to do something about the genocide in the Sudan. She wanted a UN resolution but knew the Chinese would veto sanctions because they get oil from the Sudan. So to get the Chinese vote, she agrees to drop US opposition and allow France and Germany to sell weapons to China. In order to stop a human massacre, we had to sell more weapons.
The lesson here? To get A, you need to offer B to C. Real actions in the world are not achieved in the voting booth. We elect officials who make the real decisions in private phone calls and back-door meetings. The currency used to create actions is favors and trades.
Moreover the only topics that get addressed are the one's with strong leadership behind them and even good ideas or problems that really need a solution often dont have a political one because there is no political will. And when there is a solution, it is often a series of seemingly unrelated events.
Although the episode wasnt fantastic i think the theme really rings true. This reality is why politics is so confusing to us on the side lines. We dont know who the payers are or what the plays are. The media show is mostly for public entertainment while the real deals are never made clear to the public. To us it looks like our leaders are flip flopping and never stop making deals long enough to "do the right thing".
