Epicurus warned us about getting involved in politics. Ignore politicians, he said. But I would nevertheless like to draw your attention to some interesting figures about Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, supplied by Owen Bell, who comments regularly on this blog.
Poll data from Fox News (see web address below) suggest that Clinton leads Bernie Sanders by 49% to 30% respectively. But amongst white people, Sanders leads Clinton by 43% to 37%. He also leads amongst men 41% to 38%. Clinton only has a 1% lead with those making more than $50000 a year, and her lead is smaller with college graduates than those without a degree. Somewhat paradoxically, despite being the older candidate, Sanders is 1% more popular amongst the under-45s, with the 45+ overwhelmingly going for Clinton.
At this point Sanders seems to be doing best amongst young white rich and educated men, despite that group being arguably the most privileged.
Why should this be? People tend to vote against a candidate rather than for one. Bernie probably hasn’t a hope of winning against the ruthless power brokers and multi- millionaires, but he is perceived to be uncorrupt, honest and to have the interests of the country at heart. The poll is a “vote” against corporatocracy and an undemocratic, gerrymandered system dominated by huge sums of money whose provenance is dubious. If Bernie continues his run, look for a campaign painting him as something to the left of Stalin and Mao and even a supporter of ISIS. Come to think of it, Epicurus had a point.
(Fox News survey:http://www.foxnews.com/politics/interactive/2015/08/14/fox-news-poll-sanders-gains-on-clinton/)
I think what Epicurus was concerned about, was the demagogues that dominated Athenian politics. They cared more about their own social standing than the welfare of the people. They gave passionate speeches arguing in favour of the continuation of the war with Sparta during the Peloponnesian War, despite the war being a highly costly and bloody affair. The people most opposed to the demagogues were not ordinary citizens, but wealthy elites such as Aristophanes.
This brings me on the to nature of support for Sanders; unlike the politicians of Epicurus’ time, Sanders is not a man who seeks power in order to wield it, but in order to be the figurehead of a wider social movement that aims to change American society. He has no interest in gaining personally from power, it is simply the only way to advance the reforms that he desires. Likewise, those who support Sanders do not support him because of his charismatic persona (unlike the demagogues). They support him because of his values- which apart from his views on involvement in politics, are largely Epicurean. That is how one can support Sanders and still be considered an Epicurean.
In the context of US politics, the nearest we have to a demagogue is Donald Trump. He uses his bellicose personality to make ill-thought policies seem appealing. His immigration policies are both inhumane and unrealistic. Like the Athenian demagogues, he is hawkish on foreign policy- which is fuelled by a nationalist idealism of America controlling all aspects of world affairs. Conversely, the foreign policy of Sanders and the Athenian elites is conservative (in the best sense of the world.) It is ingrained in Realpolitik: treating the world how is it, not how you would like it to be. This doesn’t mean pacifism- a label Sanders has explicitly rejected- it simply means entering into deals and alliances if they are the best option of what’s available, even if they are not innately good.
Finally, the reason why both Sanders and the anti-war Athenians are more popular amongst the wealthy and privileged, is because they are more educated. This makes them more likely to develop a consistent ideology, which in turn, makes them more likely to support the candidate who is more ideologically consistent- which in this case, is Sanders. This is not to disparage the unprivileged, who are the victims of an unfair economic system. It is simply to explain things how they are.
Good post . Thank you.