In The Arena
Iowa held its primary election yesterday. Most of you did not notice or participate. You had to be a Republican, Democrat, or Libertarian…in other words, a member of one of the recognized political parties. And even then, you might have had very few, if any, contested races, so you skipped it in favor of other summertime activities.
But it is a very important part of the political process. And today, the day after, I salute those who ran and lost.
I hate to even use the word “lost” because it seems disparaging. Because without people who take time off from their lives, spend money on a campaign, and put themselves out there…the system fails. And without those who give it a go despite long odds…I have greater admiration, because it would have been far easier to sit at home and ensure that conventional wisdom prevails.
Some analysts today note particularly close races, where incumbents perform worse than expected. True, voters were sending a signal. But only because someone put themselves out there as a choice for voters.
Other races were not as close, but to those who believed in themselves enough to make the run regardless of the outcome—thank you for believing in the system, for offering yourself up, for being—as Theodore Roosevelt famously termed it—the one in the arena.
Easy to sit on the sidelines and whine and moan. Far harder to step up, and step into the arena.
That said…the field is set, and it’s on to November.
