Reconditioning Governments to Adhere to the Construction of Modern Politics

Laws, standards, traditions and norms make humans tense. We prescribe to ourselves methods on how to be regulated at the hands of others, whom we believe to be trustworthy with the protection over our own constitutions, when the only defenders of our lives and freedoms are none other than ourselves. We are governed by limitations, not just of natural consequences of our habitations and natures but also by manmade laws that force us to keep a lid on who we really are. Therefore, our inability to avoid being tense in life is not entirely due to our natures but has greatly to do with our need to stay and feel in control.

Political systems of the Information Age are all about control and less about liberation. Restrictions and limitations derived from regulations and inspections have always resulted in revolutionary urges to restore the balance. However, with the illusions that have been well embedded within the people's consciousness, through the avid use of media exploitation, people do not seem to act beyond their questioning. In other words, people may have questioned the absurdity taking place in our current times, such as the increase in wars, rise in poverty or further divide (increased bipolarity) amongst nations on the international stage that may lead to another cold or world war, if not already begun, yet many do not seem to act upon trying to fix matters in any way imaginable.

People are definitely raising their eyebrows concerning world events and the predicaments we face, such as wondering about why no real change has taken place after the Great Recession, why no true democratic transformations have been exhibited by the aftermath of the Arab Spring uprisings, why climate change is still seen as, what Anthony Giddens would have described it, "a back-of-the-mind issue", or why the majority does not seem to be getting along and trying to cope with one another to fight a virus that has caused one of the greatest economic crises of our time – Covid-19? This is due to a weak political system, which is still based on traditional methods of cunning deception, manipulative scheming and power ploys stirred to keep people either negligent or at bay with feeling hopeless or useless in doing anything worthy enough to allow progress to ensue. We ask for regulations, not necessarily in order to fulfil an orderly life, but rather because we do not trust ourselves enough to take responsibility for our actions. That is why, we listen to our parents, certain peers, dear friends or even managers/mentors to be guided. We sometimes even go so far as to pay for life coaching or be heard by some psychologist, in order to hear out our deepest concerns or confusions that are obstructing our ability to live.

Assigning a government to manage the affairs of a country, is similarly close to the comfort sought out from the reliance on one's parents or hiring a management team to manage one's business or finding a partner that may carry part of the load off our shoulders. We aid governments or try to keep rehabilitating them, in order for them to do the things that we either fail to consider, forget to do or are scared to even pursue. Rather than disputing the roles of government over society, or excluding the roles of one of the other, such as Margaret Thatcher’s controversial statement, “There is no such thing as society”, when one asks why government, then one should ask why have a society?

We are beings that either are to be governed or ought to govern. Nature might govern the animal kingdom, to an extent, where it shows the boundaries or limitations that every species has in their midst. However, humans overlook nature and even dare to fight it, as it is our reason, filled with various emotional strives, that makes us believe we are special and beyond what our circumstances allows us to be – Human’s strive towards prolonging life through science, is a daring pursuit taken upon us to defy nature. Even if we sought to take on the anarchistic doctrine of eliminating the notion of government from our lives, we shall always be governed by others that either believe they are entitled to because of their superiority or because they seek to protect their loved ones or because they have ambition for a better and more glorified life. Because we are naturally a competitive and self-intrinsic species, we are obliged to form a government that may keep a lid on our compulsion to be safe from the overdose of freedom.

To enhance our understanding of politics, such a discipline must address responsibility and accountability for the sake of appropriate forms of freedom to be derived. Too much freedom may work against us, like too much of anything in life. Which is why, politics of the Information Age must address the dire need for balance to be presented on the affairs of humans. Just as the lid, which is seen here as legislative processes or laws, is required to be placed on the pot, which is a people or nation, the right type of lid must be transparent and not opaque; in order for us to see what is being cooked up within a nation; the food being the various ideas, beliefs and laws that combine to make a nation. The lid helps contain the heat that speed up the cooking process from within the pot, while protecting the food from any outside contamination. The lid though may be removed whenever needed, in order for the final product to be served and consumed. Having the lid on for too long would basically entrap the food and over cook it, especially when the fire is still on. The fire in this metaphor is the political process. Without the fire, there can be no meal for consumption. The stronger and well-intentioned a political system is, the faster and better the results may be. However, a high fire for a longer period of time burns the dish, which in other words wears out the people – The more tightening and intoxicating politics becomes, which is highly exhibited in our current modern society, then the more people shall either fear or dodge it. A ruler, in this context, is basically the chef. Every chef may have the same ingredients and tools at their disposal, but what they do not share is the common sense, taste, creativity and vision to see the dish through. A leader is the same. How well they manage the cooking process goes back to how well they know what it is they are cooking, for how many people they are cooking for and for what occasion or reason they are cooking to begin with. The strategy of the chef, the products available for the dish, the type of utensils and equipment provided and the environment set within the kitchen, are all factors that fall under the discipline of politics.

Politics, as a discipline, needs to address every aspect of society, as one aspect may very well impact another, even if the connection is not clearly presented or perceived. Government is needed for establishing a functional society, but is not enough. It needs to be aided and even led by the masses and other defining institutions, like civil society groups, in order to be able to do its part as well as possible. To accomplish this, within our current age of confusion, we need to break off from the traditions that determine what politics is and what politics is designed for, which dates back to the Ancients. New methods of interpretation, new knowledge to derive from and new political etiquette is required to fit with the complex times of the Information Age. We cannot be living the future, with the knowledge of the past. The past is useful, however almost every discipline or field of knowledge has been changing with the times. Why hasn't politics been undergoing a similar transition? The main reason may be, because people supposedly do not change. We are who we are, that may be, but we are also what we choose to be.

Political reform must take the form of gaining an enlightenment in political understanding, based on the very distinct mindsets presented by human beings of the present age. Much may have remained the same, concerning political tradition, from generation to generation throughout most of human history. However, the dawn of the Information Age, delivered a new set of circumstances, which run unprecedented and continue to elude and confuse our minds. With that, reforming political understanding is imperative for the survival and progress of the human species. Politics must encompass a definition it has not remained true to, which is what Otto Von Bismarck referred to it as the "art of possibilities". These possibilities must come in the form of exploration. Such act no longer seems to be common in the Information Age. We no longer have explorers but rather innovators that keep recycling old terms, notions and methods to keep the same political traditions alive, whether they were liberal or conservative in all their varying forms. Exploring ways on how to best make everyone gain access to better lives, without attaching a price to such services that are meant to be provided by governments willingly and not forcefully or cunningly, is what politics of the Information Age should advocate. The fact that political systems are intertwined with business processes, determines how profit-oriented our political institutions have become; whether they were democratic governments in the West or autocratic regimes in the East, both wear different attires covering the same bodies - bodies that possess the same functions, features and organs.

Reforming political understanding is to be handled by reassessing what moves us, at the present time. Understanding the dynamics of people, their mental and cognitive capacities and the different set of needs and wants they wish to acquire, is essential for reconstructing the political landscape. The reliance on literature that still focuses on basic natural rights, for instance, is a subject long surpassed. Even if major human rights issues exist till this very day, which there is no excuse for, the fact that such literature still has not forced governments to take action, is a slight indication that such literature no longer contains the spark needed to arouse sentiments, like how literature of enlightened thinkers had done so during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Reforming our perceptions of what leaders ought to be, is crucial, in order for our institutions to begin processing for posterity to produce such breed. Even though rulers or leaders of the present are different from those of the past, they just appear to look different but are in fact still acting the same. Cunning, deceptive and populistic features hide the various weaknesses that such modern rulers conceal craftily. Both, old and new leaders, work on the people's emotions to advance their own interests. That is because the makeup of politics is designed to focus more on power than that of welfare. When the main aim in politics is how to gain power, then that automatically overrides welfare, wellbeing, and prosperity. Even the progress that may be witnessed, among nations led by ambitious folk, are based on how much power certain individuals manage to accumulate, absorb and utilize for their own satisfactions. The fact that such motive is what drives most leaders, especially within the materialistic and overlapping realities of our day, is what spoils the uniqueness of politics as a discipline that is meant to process truths and prevent lies.

To reform politics, in order to produce a more liberated and prosperous society that is run on a functional attitude between the ruler and ruled, several factors must be highlighted for the reformation of such an ancient and integral human discipline.

• Governments must change like the seasons or else, governments will be facing extinction. Traditional politics, which most systems are based upon or where some modernized systems are returning to, are rigid. Rigidity in today's ever evolving circumstances, is frightening. How the structures of governments are based on certain hierarchies, or how elitist traditions of hegemonic influence are dominating the masses psyche or cultural norms that remain restrictive with children's growth and ambitions, are all contributing factors to the deadening path we are riding on, using current political methods. Breaking off from such rigidity means liberating the political spectrum from any restrictions or vagueness in its essentiality for the preservation and prosperity of society.

• We ought to change the way we govern, by reinventing the art of governance through introducing novel forms of rule. How to manage human beings has been an art that has been evolving since human conception, yet, it has not been always subtle or widely accepted by one party versus another. There are always discrepancies in the way humans are being governed, which is why finding a middle ground to the way we govern others, is essential. Especially when we live in times where everyone wishes to be a leader or very independent, the concept of independence must be clarified and rectified, in order for the masses not to lose themselves in the process. For, dependence is very much a necessity in life and something that no species on this planet may ignore. How to be depended on one another and what to gain out of such collaboration must be straightened out, through civil conduct that has an intellectual base.

• Changing the purpose of governance is necessary, as most governments in the East still claim to be "chosen" by a higher power or are believed to be rightful rulers over their people, regardless of their actions, merits or characters. In the West, governments seem to be doing less governing and more squabbling, which therefore hinders any notion of progress and weakens their democratic processes, which makes people lean more towards other systems that might deliver more fruitful outcomes, such as the rising stance of socialism once again.

• Seeking to change the social system to accommodate healthy politics, is obligatory, if we seek to breed a generation of intellectuals or open-minded individuals that have the "self-interest" of helping others strive and thrive to become better. Maintaining an attitude where we seek to help enhance other people's lives, believing that it would in return positively impact their own, is a direction that must be taken under the right circumstances. To achieve such political success, there must be a social environment that would accommodate and advocate such behaviour, rather than take a more partisan or nationalistic view towards politics.

• Finally, and probably the most challenging, venture that must be undertaken, is establishing a separation between power and politics from each other. Both components have had an abusive history that has influenced and shaped political societies across the globe for centuries. While power may seem to be indispensable from the field of politics, it must be addressed separately and be placed under direct supervision, in order for it to be contained. We can take a look at almost Angela Merkel’s 16-year rule in Germany and begin to visualize how can such a concept may exist. Power is deceptive and attractive, corrupting the best and attracting the worst. Politics, in its natural form, is purely a study of survival that ensures a sound system of collaboration is taking place within or between countries to deliver stability.

Stability is not mundane, but rather competition must be encouraged within stable societies, in order for them to blossom. A growing society is one that is stable, like a child eating the right foods to grow up fast and in a healthy manner. Power must be studied, but in a way that is perceived of as a negative reaction from abuse of political endeavours. To encourage or discreetly favour power plays, is ought to be prohibited. While it is an innate feature within humans, for power to cloud our judgments, the power to ensure rightful political actions for the sake of a liberated state of affairs that is functional enough to process the good times and handle the bad times, is to be considered highly. The reformation of politics is essential, in order to manage the state of affairs that are mentally and physically endured by the generations of the portable, in comparison to the generations of the plugged, when strangely enough both seem hooked to the same system that is taking more than giving.