Stuff that Actually Matters Politics (STAMP)

The standard of politics jeopardises our future in the 21st century, for climate and other things

Imagine observing our world from above.

Seeing us, these transient lifeforms, scurrying about our day-to-day business, unaware we are being observed by a higher intellect. You see a global society that is changing at an extraordinary pace, but with an extraordinary range of potential future paths ahead.

At one extreme is the sunny uplands of progress. Of quality of life for billions of people improving to levels unimaginable by historical standards, driven in material terms by the onward march of the “hard” infrastructure of technology, and in spiritual terms by the continued evolution the “soft” infrastructure of human understanding through philosophy or spirituality in all its shapes and forms.

At the other extreme is collapse through nuclear war, pandemics, catastrophic cyber failures or climate breakdown.

We are a species at a crossroads.

Our planet hosts the only known complex life in the universe and we are the only species to have achieved self-awareness. And yet is not possible to say with certainty that we will survive the next 100 years. And, if we go what would that mean for the world? Or the universe?

We live at a time of cosmological importance.

What happens when you take that thought, that awe for what we have and fear for what we might lose, and bring it into an assessment of our politics and our leaders today?

At the time of writing here in the UK we are in the final run up to a General Election, so it seems a relevant moment to reflect on this.

In recent weeks the focus of discussion has focussed, as of course it would do, on points scoring and political optics. The manner of the leading figures in this campaign has been particularly robotic and at times journalistic oxygen has been consumed by points which are quite manifestly purely superficial.  

There has at least been coverage of topics of real importance and substance – the state of the National Health Service, climate change and the future for young people. But even in these areas discussion skews towards the more peripheral dimensions – in health, for example, the quantum of NHS spending in the short-term, rather than how to address the root causes of poor health. And, climate change aside, there is a complete absence of engagement with any of the new but long-term global challenges we face moving into the mid-21st century – not just existential threats through our own technology or our fractious relationship  with the natural world, but other potential looming crises, such as through demographics or debt for instance, and increasing geopolitical conflict.

Of course, with politics in the UK it has always been thus. An election process which primarily acts as raucous entertainment. A window into mechanics of the Mother of Democracies – a world of booze and fags, of mouldering leather upholstery in oak panelled rooms with leaky pipes. Of bawdy, cynical wit, late nights, of consciously anachronistic protocols and division bells. Of overhanging bellies and crumpled suits.

A body politic that is held in rightful sanctity. Democracy is, after all, the least bad way to run countries we have yet invented. It has defeated autocrats on the beaches, in the fields and in the cities.

It is of course naïve to think that politics can transform into an enlightened and collaborative investigation of the great issues of our time. The political sausage machine will always make sausages. But the focus of discourse is now in many ways completely disconnected from what really matters now.

We can do better.

Politics and politicians could be more connected to people and more connected to what is of genuine importance to us and our future – we might call this Stuff That Actually Matters Politics (STAMP).

Here are three simple suggestions make our system a little bit more STAMP-y:

1.      Be More Human. Actually, Human.

Rather than crowing about historical triumphs or making “bold” statements of intent on policy specifics that have been crafted with advisors, politicians could speak about their selves. As in, their actual selves, transparently expressing their hopes and fears as people and citizens in this world, right now.

Rather than worn soundbites about their upbringings, they could put the effort in to articulate what they believe to be their most relevant personal characteristics. This could include, for example, drive balanced with humility. Or a willingness to learn from mistakes, or an ability to form teams around themselves which are empowered with true. Agency. Or it could be a clear articulation of being driven by a purpose, and what that purpose is. Characteristics such as these are well established as being among the most effective for leadership.

The uproarious reaction to the Prime Minister’s decision to return home early from D-Day commemorations to take a prerecorded political interview is testament to this. The contrast between a national leader slinking back home to score political points and the sacrifice made by that generation back in a wet and windy June in 1944, walking off beaches into weeks of hell in Normandy, could not have been starker.

2.      Existential Threats

There is not nearly enough discussion of things that genuinely threaten our existence as a free and flourishing society, or even as a species. Climate is at least on the agenda, although it is disappointing to see (i) it being relatively deprioritised as compared to two year ago, (ii) climate action in some areas being portrayed as a “necessary sacrifice” (which completely misses the point that clean technology is reshaping the world for the better) and (iii) the issue being nudged onto the chess board of the culture wars. But at least it is covered.

What about pandemics? We have just had a global dress rehearsal with COVID-19, a virus which may have had an Infection Mortality Rate (IFR) of less than 0.5% even in 2020 but which may have caused over seven million deaths to-date and extraordinary economic and social damage. The next pandemic may be a far more lethal pathogen with completely different consequences for the fabric of society - would key workers in food production, healthcare or power generation continue to show up for work and risk catching a virus with say a 60% lethality risk? Yet there has been zero discussion of this.

What about the fundamental changes to our way of life that AI might cause? Other than jokey references about when the robots take over - zero discussion.

Increased risk of nuclear war?

The combination of nuclear weapons and AI? (What could go wrong there).

Zero discussion.

We should all care about, and discuss, these issues. Politicians in particular.

3.      Lessons from Outside the Political Sphere

Meanwhile the rest of the world has moved on in standards of how things are communicated. In business, in the arts, there has been extraordinary progress in the pursuit of excellence. Artists like Taylor Swift or Coldplay have taken the concept of live performances to an entirely new level. In business, like him or loath him, Elon Musk has fundamentally disrupted entire industries, from electric cars to space travel. In sports year after year innovation raises standards, with constant redefining of what is considered possible with the human body, but also in terms of understanding the mental dimensions of athletic performance.

To watch a big wave surfer at work, as much as to hear a perfect rendition of Chopin’s Étude Op. 25 No.6 in G-sharp minor, or hear an explanation of progress in quantum mechanics, is to truly marvel at what humanity can achieve. It’s not just our times: throughout human history people have spent entire lifetimes in the pursuit of excellence, of crafts from archery to painting, from the study of philosophy to simply staying alive as a hunter gatherer.

The role of a politician is part communicator, part legislator. Part speaker, part do-er. But, above all, all leader. Politicians could take inspiration from all manner of places for how to apply a single-minded dedication to their vocation; to take the notion of leadership to new heights. Leadership based on conviction. This would be in stark contrast to the current norms of treating politics as a career in mediocrity and vacillation in accordance with the latest advice from consultants on what messaging might be currently popular.

The dispiriting nature of current politics cannot be attributed to politicians themselves entirely; it is the system that is at fault. The media of course have a role to play – by structuring debates along the lines of gladiatorial sound bites the viewer is left continually frustrated by the failure to explore any issue in proper detail. There is a role for longer-form discussion, moderated in a way to illuminate what really matters about particular topics, and what the position of different parties really is.

Implementing STAMP of course this is not easy, because of the way we think and feel.

We see what is right in front of us.

And this makes it harder to see the universe.

Note: the views here are purely my own.