Corruption and Government

There are many issues that we can focus in on when we talk about bad government. There is everything from celebrity justice for the powerful, pork barrelling, partisanship, congressional seniority, preemptive war, the quest for the soundbite, propaganda, etc. etc.

What I would like to do with this post is try to understand corruption's nature, which includes putting it into a historical perspective. I'd also like to put government, and the American government specifically into that same perspective and understanding. In doing so I hope that it can be determined how to reduce the causes and effects of corruption. This is not a crusade for the idealist. Instead I hope that some real truth will come out of this exploration and a plan of action to follow.

In order to put corruption and government into perspective we must first begin with God's making of a good creation. That is the beginning of a story, the story, that defines truth for the world we live in. Following the creation we fell and messed everything up. Therefore I believe and I think it is safe to assume that government is/was good, and just like everything else it has been corrupted by the Fall (Genesis 1:26, 31; and chapter 3). Jesus also calls his followers to be salt and light in Matthew 5:13-20. Logically, there is a degree to which something can be salty, and how bright a light can be. There is a spectrum. Obviously the government could use more salt and more light. Which is why I say this is not an idealist's crusade. But there is another truth I want to point out, it is also mentioned in Matthew 5:17-20 when Jesus talks about salt and light. He calls us to be purifiers and illuminators in this world as the governors of this world, a responsibility since creation, and in the very next sentences reminds us that only God is capable of bringing about the end of the earth - fulfilling the consummation he began in the redemptive work of the cross. So, I also do not believe we Christians can speed up or usher in the New Creation by making sure all our government employees are Christians, and our whole society revolves around Christ's teachings. I don't think God ever told us to do that, he said he would do it. For example, the 1st century church was too small to have done anything about the military dictatorship of the Roman Empire and all the evils of its society. Rome continued as a civilization and a world power for another several hundred years.

Now I am not trying to preach the American gospel here, but Christians, because of the saltiness and luminescence of Christians throughout history who challenged tyranny and injustice, preserved the written word, invented and used the printing press, asserted their rights to worship God freely. All of that began to change Western civilization for the better. America is but one step along that evolutionary process. We have the formations of a good nation in our Constitution. Now 218 years after its passage we can be improving on that government and the society that chooses to live according to its principles. There are degrees to which we can brighten and season this country and society. How can we do that by focusing on the government specifically?

I am hoping to challenge you to think in such a way that we do not just think of things to combat partisanship specifically, but rather what is an area(s) that needs salt and light that once seasoned and illumined will begin to change many things. I can think of three off the top of my head: public schools and colleges, print and television media, and families (raising children with certain values and habits). This kind of saltiness could be described as adding salt to the soup, since it affects the flavor of all the vegetables, meat, and broth.

It is also good to apply salt directly to the meat however, so I also want to focus on how to do that. This kind of saltiness could be called salting a ham (for those who are not from the American South or ever ordered a ham breakfast from Cracker Barrel, I assure its good).

So maybe we should start by identifying things that need direct salt application and what that really translates into with our actions, and then identify things that we can do to add salt to the soup.

Here are some things that interest me: (We can think of ways to apply salt later)

1. The fact that the presidency has become more important and powerful than Congress in a country that is stated to be a republic and supposedly values the separation of powers.
2. The fact that every two years only a small portion of Congress members are voted out, creating Congressional Stagnation, with several disadvantages and advantages, however the advantages could be addressed/preserved by several of the solutions to the fundamental disadvantages of this problem.
3. Preemptive War doctrine and the growing acceptance of warfare as the reflexive first choice to solving our nation's problems.
4. Partisanship and the belief that two political parties, or rather political parties in general are "the way to do things."
5. Campaign finance - since when did giving money to a politician become an act of free speech? Can the same be said about freedom of the press? If I purchase a newspaper, watch a news channel, or have news articles emailed to me is it considered an act on my part of exercising my right of un-infringed press? Therefore, if campaign finance is a major source of a candidate's strength for remaining in office, and this prolonged incumbency is a source of low voter turnout and feelings of dissatisfaction from the public about Congressional job approval would it not make sense to fairly regulate the financing of campaigns? My suggestion is that every single person wishing to run for office (naturally, meeting the Constitutional requirements of office) should be given federal funding in equal proportion to all other persons running for that same office. In such a system the incumbent, as well as all others contending for the numbered district of any given state would each receive an equal share of all funds donated to a specified bank account.

Well, I have added enough food for thought to this post. Please comment with any thoughts of your own, and if you wish to add to list of things that need to be addressed in regards to corruption in America.