'Political Science vs. Government - Did They Make Us Lose The Way?'
By Thomas D. Segel (05/31/08)
Harlingen, Texas, May 31, 2008: Back in those long ago days when I was a college undergraduate, I selected a major. It was called Government. Now this word distinction is important because in those days our institutions of higher learning thought they were obligated to teach about the art of governance. Today it is difficult to find a major field of study listed as Government. Instead it has been replaced by Political Science.
These two titles are now considered to be the same, but really have markedly different meanings. As defined in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, the primary definition of Government or Governance is “moral conduct or behavior, discretion, in the act or process of governing”. Political Science, which has replaced that specific college major, is defined as “a social science concerned chiefly with the description and analysis of political and especially governmental institutions”.
You can see the difference at a glance. Colleges and universities of the past taught young students about how to conduct themselves morally and with discretion while governing. Today these institutions teach about the workings of governmental bodies and the politics of working in such environments.
Just as the lessons on governance have vanished with the passage of time, so has the morality and discretion taught in those now forgotten classrooms. In place of those studies our students learn about the “politics” of government, which is in reality learning about how to win office and hold control of government. This is a very wrong-headed approach to how the public arena should be viewed.
Because the virtues of public service have been diminished, people now entering into these fields learn primarily from those who currently hold positions of power. They learn “politics”, not “government”. The difference can best be expressed in a current tongue-in-cheek definition of the word. Politics (n.): 1. A multitude of special interests masquerading as a contest of principles. 2. The conduct of public affairs by public officials for private advantage and private fortune.
Because political science or politics is the rule, rather than the exception, we have an unending collection of political jokes that range from…”Our politicians are so crooked that when they die, we have to screw them into the ground”, to “Question: How do you tell if a politician is lying? Answer: His lips are moving!”
Seldom does a week pass without us hearing about politicos who have stolen from the public, lied to their constituents, cheated on their families, committed sexual misconduct, distorted their record, padded their resume, taken credit for good things they had no part in advancing, put blame on the backs of others for their own failings, accepted bribes or falsified records.
If they are not into committing any of the above, they are standing around with a moist finger raised high to check which way the political wind is blowing. This is done so frequently that most folks think it is some form of political salute.
There are really very few office holders on the national scene that can be considered as quality individuals who are dedicating their lives to moral conduct and behavior, discretion and the art of governance. In their place we have managed to substitute political parties and political animals that find it next to impossible to be honest with the public. Government is gone…. replaced by politics, politics, politics…or win at any cost. It has turned us into a nation that constantly votes for the least offensive of several very bad choices…and we get bad officials as the result of our own actions. Even staying home and not voting isn’t a good option, because then, we are giving another vote to the other guy we don’t want to see in office.
Some people think we can blame political science, a preoccupation with enhancing political parties and a failure to demand quality candidates for the mess we have in today’s public arena. When the academics stopped teaching government we lost all those great young minds that dreamed of meaningful public service. We allowed our nation to become a tool of the political elite…and America today is the big loser.
Semper Fidelis
Tom Segel
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