<snip> When the government acts or does not act, lives are at stake. In Bush-style politics (father and son), it's all a game: either you're winning or you're losing. It's a clash of status, not agendas or ideas. The only thing that matters is whether you have the reins of power or not. Where you're taking the horse hardly matters.
When we direct our outrage at our leaders (and the soft-headed, compliant press corpse), we are saying that ideas matter, that policy matters, that lives are at stake. We believe that politics is not to be "played", but to be lived, and expect at least that much from our leaders. We live our politics for ourselves and our neighbors, because we are affected every day. <snip>
We are not playing. We must not play. In public policy, "winning" and "losing" means life and death. When we call for accountability, we are trying to save lives. President Bush -- or any politician or bureaucrat -- doesn't matter as an individual. It's what he does or doesn't do that matters. Our criticism must affect action.
http://bluemassgroup.typepad.com/blue_mass_group/2005/09/we_are_not_play.html