Government, macro and micro

On the harbor cruise, I saw couples gazing at the skyline perhaps dreaming their future here in the big city, but only felt tearful that this would never be a city of mine-- though I see its appeal for the boys, I will never speak Chinese, will want the comfort of home, will always be a stranger. They are what I wished for them to be, but now they leave me in the dust. 

The physical, material ease and comfort of Charlottesville has compromised me. The things I worry about are trivial. Jacob and I were talking yesterday about the wasted potential of America; he always talks as if it is only Fox News narcissists, but I see plenty of non-intellectuals here, too, and of course diversity is essential to society. He was bemoaning the willful incompetence and self-centeredness of Americans (anti immigration, racism, intellectual laziness) and feels that because of this these people will be marginalized and America will be effectively run by an oligarchy of those in the know (hello? Isn't it always really this way?)  It is as if he is saying that democracy is not a functional approach, and to the extent that idiots have a say, the state becomes weaker. It seems true that China has come a long way in a very short time, albeit with costs to individuals. It is amazing that the entire subway system has been built in fifteen years, and my 2009 guidebook is obsolete.I wonder how there can be a happy medium between China's highly centralized authoritarian state and our presently dysfunctional mess of a “democracy”. If a large chunk of the population is really not capable of making thoughtful, considered judgments about the complex issues we face, and so respond to “It's the Mexicans, or it's the gays, or the wingnuts?” or other blaming tactics, or allows itself to be distracted by irrelevant side stories, or just has another Oreo—how can we get better? Was it ever really better, in terms of more people understanding what the issues are? Is life just more complex now, and harder to understand?  How does the availability of instant mass communication with cellphones and internet support and destroy an effective democracy? There must be 5000 books and theses about this already, but it is still an evolving process. Jacob may be right that to vote in  elections are meaningless in real practical terms, just a feelgood thing. But when people make some gesture, like voting, it increases their sense of ownership and commitment to the enterprise. Also, China's government, while authoritarian, does seem to have the overall interest of the nation in mind. 

Cucumber at Max' apartment

This is often not the case when the government has unchallenged power. And, of course, Jacob is immune to any decisions the government might make and those who are likely to be dispossessed are not in his circle. I was surprised to hear Max say, with regard to Ai Wei Wei, that he provoked the government and so deserves to be thrown in jail. I wonder how different things look 500 miles west, away from the jewels of the coast.