Can't Politics Be Like an Afternoon at the Pub? - The Leavenworth Times

Can't politics be like an afternoon at the pub? - The Leavenworth Times

I hate how we talk about politics.This might come as a surprise, because at least part of my day job involves writing about politics in Kansas. But the exposure has solidified my belief that lawmakers, officials, journalists and the general public all could do a better job of thinking about what they’re doing and why.Our conversation about politics fails at least in part because it’s inevitably couched in adversarial terms.

Politics isn’t a game — or brutal war. In Kansas and the U.S., can’t it be an afternoon at the pub?

While much of our political discourse assumes conflict, perhaps we can find common ground in the metaphor of a local bar. (Getty Images)I hate how we talk about politics. This might come as a surprise, because at least part of my day job involves writing about politics in Kansas. But the exposure has solidified my belief that lawmakers, officials, journalists and the general public all could do a better job of thinking about what they’re doing a…