Reply #19: It's the "savior complex," Selwynn [View All]

In that, I mean that there are many people who, through their "ideological purity", expect their chosen nominee to be that knight on a white horse who will ride into Washington and set everything right. No more militarism, no more poverty, no more injustice. This "savior" will make everything right again.

It's not much different than the way in which fundamentalist Christians view Christ. It's this belief that we are so completely weak that there is only one way to save ourselves -- to totally and completely give up, and instead depend on someone else.

As a deeply spiritual person, I see this kind of attitude as the most self-defeating tripe imaginable.

I, like you, are just about completely off the political spectrum entirely. I know that there is absolutely NO WAY that anyone who accurately reflects my views will even come close to getting the nomination, let alone defeating Bush. But I am smart enough to realize that ANY Democrat will be slightly closer to my views that Bush and the Republicans are.

Instead of refusing to vote for the Democratic nominee, what those of us who are disenchanted by the system need to do is to vote Democratic and then apply all the pressure we can muster once that person is elected. There is no savior coming to save us all. Collectively, WE are the savior that we have all been waiting for. The sooner we recognize that -- and get about doing the heavy lifting required to secure a better future -- the better off we will ALL be.