I KNOW I know; I’ve already broken my promise at least five times. When I started this column, I said I wasn’t going to write about politics. But, partly as a reaction to all that I have read these last year so far; especially about what’s been brewing on the horizon a few days before election, it really has me, and understandably a lot of other people thinking (not to mention, worrying). So, please indulge me my two cents or three cents. When the election’s over with, this trap is shut, so what the heck.
Peter’s Aunt May might have been credited to have articulated it first, the now-iconic phrase… with great power comes great responsibility. Within the context of that Spidey movie, it might have been the perfect quotation, but sadly not always, once it is used in real life. Most certainly, and nowadays too, the Aunt May quote so very difficult to apply when one dwells into the realm of politics. For its constituents on the receiving end, it more looks like a Hail Mary.
If only this were movie-talk, I would be wont to say that Cersei’s in Game of Throne “Power is power” (as against knowledge is power) is the closest thing to reality in our society today. While it seems so absolute, it is also brutish when one applies it today. However, there is still one last quip that surely takes the cake. It might have been the philosopher Aristotle, the said-inventor of political science who first said it, “whoever holds economic power holds political power”. And with that, we end this who-said-it portion.
In a sense, that age-old maxim might just as well be one of the things we should all consider most in our choices of candidates. If a candidates says he or she has your interest in their agenda, at least first look into his economic interests and background. More often than not, that’s where their most innate biases will lie. Then, as additional reference, also check those who presently sit in both the local and national government positions. After the same background study, review their performance in office.
After all these, you will have been ready to proceed and recheck your final choice of candidates. Ponder on the ones who hold economic power and on those whom you think will best keep your interest in their plans once they win and assume office. Finally go to the polls and vote, not to mention throw in a Hail Mary pass or two.
