Today's column by David Brooks in the New York Times goes by the subtitle of this post, which refers to the noir hero from "The Maltese Falcon." Brooks argues that Generation Y -- or a part of it, which he deems as anti-political to the core -- would do well to become reacquainted with the "moral realism" exhibited by such characters. His point is that much of the idealism of GenY -- seen, for example, in much of the service-oriented, social-entrepeneurial activity of today's twenty-somethings -- is lacking in moral-political fundamentals. His point is that the Sam Spade character was a man with a bit of a shady past, and as someone who'd been around the block, he was not caught up in his own virtue and innocence. This sense of selfless virtue, says Brooks, is ultimately self-defeating: humans, we all eventually learn one way or another are mixed creatures, neither inherently evil nor unambiguously heroic. Politics, to Brooks, is a undeniable part of our natures, and the pursuit of high ideals, no matter how praiseworthy, cannot relieve us of its burdens. Being human is being a part of a community in which choice, individually and collectively, is inescapable.
So to the litany of attributions laid on this generation by the Bucholz "Go-nowhere" meme is the claim that Gen Y's defining element may be its desire to flee from politics in its mundane, often-mind-numbing toxicity. At a point in time when polls tell us that the percentage of Americans with "some" or "much trust in the government in Washington to do what is right for the American people" is at an all-time low of 17%, this desire to flee from the political is understandable. What apparently is more difficult to understand is that, in the end, this effort to rise above the pettiness and ugliness that often accompanies political disputes only deepens the darker nature of our struggle to govern ourselves democratically.
As politically interested members of this generation, does Brooks's indictment of some of your cohorts hold water or not?
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I think this assessment is partially true. A majority of people our age lack an interest in politics due to the precise nature of it currently. The reference to Bogart in that film does justice to the idea. But I think part of this generation's lacking in the moral-political fundamentals has to do with the world in which we were raised. Not many people of our generation see success or positive political decisions through a moral concourse. After all, we have been raised in a culture that prides itself on a 50% divorce rate and political scandals of mass quantities. Does that make our lacking interest in politics correct? Probably not, we should still strive to be involved and understand the world in which we are living.
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