Thomas Friedman fears that our democracy is so broken it will not be able to meet the big challenges of the future. In “Advice From Grandma,” he cites six stubborn realities that are paralyzing America:
- Money in politics has become so pervasive that lawmakers have to spend most of their time raising it, selling their souls to those who have it or defending themselves from the smallest interest groups with deep pockets that can trump the national interest.
- The gerrymandering of political districts means politicians of each party can now choose their own voters and never have to appeal to the center.
- The cable TV culture encourages shouting and segregating people into their own political echo chambers.
- A permanent presidential campaign leaves little time for governing.
- The Internet, which, at its best, provides a check on elites and establishments and opens the way for new voices and, which, at its worst provides a home for every extreme view and spawns digital lynch mobs from across the political spectrum that attack anyone who departs from their specific orthodoxy.
- A U.S. business community that has become so globalized that it only comes to Washington to lobby for its own narrow interests; it rarely speaks out anymore in defense of national issues like health care, education and open markets.
Friedman wonders if the “failed state” of California is a prelude to the coming failed state status of America. Friedman says the hope that leaders such as Schwarzenegger and Obama might make a difference is turning to disappointment.
Friedman writes, “The standard answer is that we need better leaders. The real answer is that we need better citizens. We need citizens who will convey to their leaders that they are ready to sacrifice, even pay, yes, higher taxes, and will not punish politicians who ask them to do the hard things. Otherwise, folks, we’re in trouble. A great power that can only produce suboptimal responses to its biggest challenges will, in time, fade from being a great power.”
