Theoretically speaking...

I was having a discussion about politics and government with someone this morning and I have come to several conclusions. 1) I have become quite cantankerous on the subject somehow. I don't know how long I've been cantankerous about the subject, and it probably has more to do with my frustration with life in general than it does with the actual government (politics, well, who does like politics, besides politicians?). 2) I much prefer being the mediating influence in conversations. And I don't like debates. At least, not when I'm sparring with one other person. (I love being a 3rd party observer who can mock the debaters and argue unreservedly with both sides). I find that, whether I really feel strongly about my position or not (and generally, I don't), having someone 'argue' for the other side makes me feel contrary, and then I get annoyingly stubborn, and it is ridiculous. I hate having my contrariness stirred up. I generally try not to be a contrary person.

And, 3) (and the real purpose of this post), I am really a hands-on, practical person. I can point out all the problems and how theoretically it needs to change, but what really frustrates me is there really is nothing that can be done about it. I mean, there is theory, and then there is reality, and I am much more concerned with what really, really matters. And not just with politics. In my graduate program, there was this one lecture where they were arguing about whether an antelope is information. And my first reaction is, "What does it matter if an antelope is information or not? There's still some wild animal trying to eat it and being able to claim 'information status' isn't going to stop that." There was also an article about whether a Mardi Gras celebration on some Caribbean island is a record. Which is great and an interesting topic of discussion, but I can't put the parade performers in an archive, so what does it matter if it is a record or not?

I don't often think of myself as an action person, but I am discovering that I get fed up with talking about stuff. If there is a problem, I want to do something about it. Maybe it won't fix the problem, but I want to be at least doing something. But I also want to do something that will make a difference. Not necessarily on a global scale or anything huge, but at least a difference for me and maybe the people around me. So, government isn't perfect and has it's problems and people still need help. Well, I can't make government start taking care of my problems or my neighbors problems, but I can try to help my neighbor. What does it matter what should or shouldn't be happening? If it isn't, I can waste a lot of time trying to make other people fix the problem, or I can do what I can in my sphere of influence and stop worrying about right and fair and all that hooplah.

I am definitely not a theoretical person. At least not in that sense. I am really just interested in living my life and doing the best I can to make things better for the people around me. I really don't care about making a big impact on the world--it seems like a huge headache and an impossible task, so I'll pass. I don't know what that says about me as a person, but that's the way it is.