What Is A Politician?

By Ayanna Jones

Politics come from the Latinization of the greek “politikos” which means ‘of, for, or relating to citizens’.  Notice that the derivation does not translate to some citizens or a few citizens.  It is an inclusive phrase. Granted, the Greeks and the Romans did not consider everyone a citizen and so the whole of humanity was not included in their thought process but that is a discussion for another day. What I want to focus on is the intent of the word and the fact that it has become such a warped and monstrously negative term, especially in this modern age.

At its best, the definition of a politician can inspire.  Think about it, a politician is one who looks after the interests and affairs of all citizens. The politician is the voice of the many distilled into the words and deeds of one. The true politician should be a champion of all but especially the ignored, the forgotten, the smallest in our society.  After all, even the smallest among us is a citizen of somewhere. Even the smallest of us has a home and place that they should belong.

Back Away from Your Rights

In today’s politics, this essential factor has been forgotten.  We seem to have adopted the philosophy of “not my circus, not my monkey”.  It is a hands-off mentality that only leads to destruction because no single person can do any of this alone.  We aren’t meant to do this alone, as humans, we are a social group and we are meant to aid each other. If we attempt to move forward alone then we actually get what we seek and we will find ourselves actually ALONE.

Now, this brings me to the dubiously labeled “new conservative” or “alt-right” movement. Honestly, if I were a conservative I would be soooooooo incredibly insulted! What is happening now and in our country especially is not truly conservativism, not at all.  It is true that conservatives advocate for a hands-off philosophy for big government, but they are not for the complete abdication of the individual’s responsibility to care for another individual.  They just don’t think big government is the way to go. The current so-called “conservative” movement is acting under the guise of dismantling big government and ‘draining the swamp” when in reality it is an elitist and exclusionary mindset that seeks to benefit the richest citizens.  It seeks to use big government to continue to benefit the richest and the most well-protected citizens. That is not what a politician is supposed to do, and that is not what the conservative philosophy is all about.

And Here is Where I Sip My Tea

What is the purpose of a politician if not to protect and preserve the rights of ALL citizens.  The way it is set up now we should stop calling them politicians and start calling them elitist businessmen.  Oh wait, that would be calling them what they are…..