Colin Read: Everybody's Business
"As soon as any man says of the affairs of the state "What does it matter to me?" the state may be given up for lost." — Jean Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract.
Well, it had to happen. Gov. David Paterson's decision to give up the ghost of a chance to be elected is the right decision. It is too bad, though, that the decision was made based on mean-spirited politics rather than based on the legitimate debates in the marketplace for ideas.
I am not necessarily a fan of Gov. Paterson. I am sure that each one of us can identify one policy or another that offended our own interests.
However, our leaders cannot make omelets without breaking a few eggs. I have become a fan of courageous leadership.
To speak the truth to a state that does not want to hear it, or to ask for broad concessions from all when most are only willing to offer up someone else, is worthy of our respect — and our appreciation.
He must have been wondering when it would be, and what would be the issue. Perhaps he made it much too easy for his enemies to come after him. He will have plenty of time to lament that.
I have come to realize, though, that New York politics is a bare-knuckle, no-holds-barred, no-need-for-decency, blood sport. If Gov. Paterson did the job that needed to be done, it was just a matter of time before the attacks would begin.
You see, in this caustic climate, our leaders are not judged by what they have accomplished. Rather, they are judged by who they upset. Over time, any good leader will shift the status quo. With each shift comes some that benefit, and some that lose. And each loser will add to our leaders' lists of enemies. As the list gets longer, and self-serving, self-described victims get angrier, something will have to give. It usually isn't pretty.
We have lost touch with those simpler times. The last president, and also the last president from New York, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, was willing to ask something from each one of us in the interest of the commonwealth. Our common wealth given way to our special interests. Once, we all recognized our leader's job was to provide us all with the best possible chance to succeed in the aggregate. Now, we judge our leaders on what they can do for us as individuals.
This movement from common interests to special interests is most troubling. By voting with these special interests, we require a new breed of leaders that will always tell us what we want to hear, rather than do for us what we all need done.
It results in leaders who follow, and who dole out sufficient favors to endear themselves to most all of us. Not only does this raise the price of government, it also stops dead in its tracks any major innovations that could sow the seeds for a more prosperous future.
Gone are the visionaries who will lead us to a higher quality of life. In a world politicized by what is good for every individual rather than by what is good for our institutions, we are instead left with no plan for the future. Our fear of change, even if change will bring even higher quality of life, causes us to hold dearly to our own personal status quos.
Consequently, we have created a headwind against improvement and a bias toward mediocrity.
There are so many things that could return this state to greatness.
A shared sense of optimism could blow away our gray clouds of gloom.
A workforce once known as one of the most innovative and hardest working in a country could return to those roots.
Places like Buffalo, once the center of the Second Industrial Revolution, from automobile manufacturing to aerospace, power generation to transmission, could reawaken its entrepreneurial spirit.
A state once known for top universities that understood their responsibility to stimulate the competitiveness of an entire nation could reengage us all.
And, a state steeped in the tradition of a commonwealth can once again understand that a rising tide lifts all boats.
We will not get back to these more successful days unless we can put our special interests aside for a moment.
We all have it in us. Each of us is willing to work a bit harder, think more cleverly, use our time better, and serve more people. We would do this if we knew everyone was making similar sacrifices.
If we could all focus on this simple bit of economics, we would move ahead as a state and as a nation. As we do so, our corner offices or the trappings of success will seem quite trivial.
You see, we only resort to such trappings of position when we are worried about position. I'd much rather be part of a bullet train piercing its way into the future than worry about my nameplate on a deck chair on the Titanic.
I think Gov. Paterson understood this. Actually, I wonder why anyone would want to campaign for his job. He found his way into the governorship by luck or by misfortune. It is difficult for one to imagine why candidates would even by lining up for his job. This state needs some harsh medicine, and we all see now what happens when the citizens of New York State are asked to take our medicine straight.
In this caustic political environment, we should actually be skeptical of anyone who truly wants to lead us. And, we must now wonder what trivial skeletons these candidates may have in the personal closets. After all, these foibles will be used as the excuse to bring them down, once they have upset enough special interests.
Meanwhile, I will continue to hope for economic leaders that govern for all of us, for our "common wealth," not for themselves, nor for each of us.
But, before that will ever happen, we must stop viewing politics for its entertainment value.
Ultimately, this column is not about the unfortunate Gov. Paterson, though. No, this column may say more about the state of our state than about a hapless governor.
Colin Read is the former dean and now teaches economics and finance in the School of Business and Economics at SUNY Plattsburgh. His fifth book, "The Rise and Fall of an Economic Empire," will be published by MacMillan Palgrave next fall. He also runs an economic and business consulting company and can be reached through his Web site www.economicinsights.net.
