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An Olympian’s Lesson to the …Mortals

Before I go on with the Pascha wishes, I need to take a minute to express my frustration that Olympia Snowe, one of the few remaining voices of reason in the US Senate, decided this past February not to seek reelection. It seems old news already, but had we not have lost our democratic sensitivity as citizens, the repercussions of her brave act should haven been troubling us for much longer.

In announcing her decision, Senator Snowe made it clear that while she was ahead in polls for reelection, the political climate with its extreme polarization made her seeking another term obsolete, because she couldn’t do much given the state of our political culture in Washington, strongly reminiscent of Greece in the late ’80’s early 90s, when politicians of the two main parties wouldn’t even talk to each other in public. Instead, they would give in to the alluring charms of populism, paving the way for today’s economic and political collapse. When I was growing up in Greece, I would look to the US political system with admiration, because elected representatives could cross lines in voting for certain bills or even supporting candidates of the opposition without losing their status within their own parties. Later, when I came here, I was thrilled to find out that in reunions and other events it was natural for political opponents to come together, socialize, drink and strike deals which required the almost magical now art of consensus.

We all remember the vitriolic attacks against Olympia Snowe about three years ago when she voted for the so-called Obama care law. And they weren’t political hits of the type someone would expect in an advanced democracy: strictly on the issue and countering her points in order to prove her wrong. They were malicious slurs, under the belt kicks, with the aim to expose her as a …traitor…someone who somehow betrayed the sacrosanct tenets of the party, which in its current populist understanding reminds us more and more of the now defunct communist parties of the former USSR and Eastern Europe! Even the Chinese have gotten rid off the party’s rigid ideology, adopting more pragmatic positions and ways. Here we are reverting to a past that didn’t even exist in this political culture! Instead of inventing the future, we are reinventing the past in order to justify the moronic choices of our present!

In May, 2010, Margarita Pournara did a cover story interview of Olympia Snowe for NEO magazine Asked if she was concerned about the American political life being overly polarized, here’s what she had to say in a prophetical, as it has been proved, manner:

“To me, it’s not about titles or roles; it’s doing what’s right …whether that’s working with Republicans or Democrats. It’s considering each bill or proposal and determining whether this was the right way to address a particular problem. Americans have little trust in the ability of Congress to address their concerns or the problems of our nation. No wonder our approval ratings as an institution have reached all-time lows! The answer begins with resoluteness. It involves cooperation. It understands bipartisanship. And it ends with leadership. Our government, our nation, our political system, and our people have persevered in the face of enormous challenges, because people of good will have gotten involved and worked together. The fact is, no party has a lock on good ideas – and especially when it comes to the major issues, for any proposed solutions to have true credibility with the American people, they cannot simply represent the desires of those on the political extremes. So I fully expect to continue working on behalf of my constituents in Maine and in the best interests of the American people. But for those people who know me, my role in the 111th Congress has been no different than the role I’ve been playing throughout my career.”

This is the kind of leader the US Senate and all of us will miss after Olympia Snowe’s term concludes this year. And what’s worse is that her brave decision to call our attention to the current partisan gridlock in Washington by ending her Senate career has fallen on deaf ears! After the initial commotion, nothing else happened and about a month and a half after her dramatic overture it’s already old and forgotten news. History, however, has the ability to surprise us and remind us of her lessons when we least expect it …

Happy Easter to all, with love, joy and time for reflection and reevaluation of what’s really important in life that only a genuine break from the every day madness can offer, albeit for a day or two!

DEMETRIOS RHOMPOTIS

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©2012 NEOCORP MEDIA

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