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Michael Levine - Contributor

Michael Levine is the founder of the prominent public relations firm Levine Communications Office in Los Angeles. He is the author of 15 books. www.LCOonline.com - E-mail:mlevine@LCOonline.com [go to Levine index]

The Politics of Addictive Behavior
The pols can't stop spending…
[Michael Levine] 4/6/05

We’ve all either witnessed the behavior first hand, or heard about it from a friend, or possibly read about it in the newspaper. We’re familiar with the telltale signs of lying, of blaming others for their situation; the inability to stop and the constant search for that next “fix” or “hit”. For some the debate continues as to whether it is an illness or merely a lack of character.

Although it may sound as though I’m talking about a junkie. I’m actually talking about the Government. Just like a junkie struggles with his addiction to drugs, our politicians struggle with their own addiction. Spending.

It may seem a bit harsh to compare Congressman, Senators, even the President, to a drug addict, but these are desperate times. Consider that the defining characteristic of an addict is the compulsion to continue [destructive behavior] despite adverse consequences.

Then consider the federal government is projecting a deficit of over $425 billion dollars this year. Surpassing last year’s record of $412.8 billion. The dollar is at its lowest point in years and slipping daily. We are a country deep in debt, mostly to foreign nations. All signs warn that if we continue on this path we, as a country, are heading toward financial disaster. Yet politicians continue to spend. In fact, according to former Congressman Joe Scarborough, Republican and Democratic politicians “are currently indulging in the most reckless federal spending spree in U.S. history.”

They spend money on prescription drug discount programs, international space stations, and the study of Hawaiian Sea Turtles. They spend money on pork-barrel projects for their home states, and unnecessary government subsidies for international agricultural conglomerates. Were it not so serious, the amount of money being spent by the Government on curious projects would be laughable. Hawaiian Sea Turtles? It’s gotten so bad Senator McCain has said they’re “spending money like a drunken sailor.” And it’s not only a federal problem. Many state, and even local governments are in a state of severe budgetary crisis as well. California’s Governor Schwarzenneger went so far as to refer to his Democratic counterparts as “wasteful, spending addicts.” Hmmm.

The problem with most addicts is that they are often the last to realize, or admit, they have a problem. The addiction is comfortable. It’s what they know. To admit there is a problem would mean they would have to change. And even if they do admit to having a problem another defining characteristic of an addict is that he or she knows what must be done to stop the [destructive behavior] yet cannot, or will not do it.

So what can we, the American people, do to help these addicts? First off, we can no longer play the part of the enabler or codependent. We cannot, in one breath, complain about government spending and, in another, continue to ask for handouts like free prescription drugs for Social Security recipients.

I would suggest an intervention is in order. If politicians can’t see their excessive spending is crippling the country then it is up to us to tell them. Do you realize the subject of fiscal responsibility was almost a non-issue in the 2004 election? Granted, there were much more pressing issues to deal with like gaps in the President’s Air National Guard service record and whether or not John Kerry threw away his war medals (both incidents which took place over thirty years ago). But that is what addicts do. They talk about anything but the real problem. The addiction. Hoping that if it is not discussed the nuisance will simply go away by itself, or be forgotten. Unfortunately, this is not a problem that will go away if ignored. On the contrary, it is one that is growing daily.

It seems we, as a country, are falling victim to yet another pitfall of many addicts. Denial. Which, by the way, isn’t just a river in a country we give nearly $2.2 billion in aid to per year. tOR

copyright 2005 Michael Levine

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