Voltaire revisited
I am a big fan of Voltaire, though I never really liked his aphorism “the perfect is the enemy of the good.” When casually applied, it has told me to abandon my ideals and embrace the mediocre.
But with this election cycle, Voltaire claims the high ground as a pragmatist for democrats who are negotiating the space between moderates and progressives. Trump has presented Democrats with the gifts of his gross incompetence and shameless corruption; gifts which they must not squander by retreating into their ideologic corners.
Progressives, social democrats included, should unconditionally support the moderates in the forthcoming election and vice versa. Discussions relative to universal healthcare, wealth disparity, dissolution of ICE, support for the Israeli government, and ending the war with Iran are best led by Democrats, even if they disagree among themselves.
The MAGA cult, with stray remnants of the Republican Party, have failed to contribute much beyond the hilarity of their circular firing squad during Jack Smith’s testimony.
New Hampshire Republicans such as Ayotte, Sununu and DiLorenzo, along with aligned Free Staters, are falling over each other to kiss the ring. They stay up late pondering ways to do the most harm to the most people, while enriching themselves in the process. For democrats, the perfect may indeed be the enemy of the good. But when it comes to this election, let the good be the enemy of the Republican Party’s depravity. Vote democratic.