Defining
a leader in modern politics, a true comedy of errors
by
Blaise Nutter
Name-calling. Threats. Lies. And that's just today's headlines.
The campaign for president here in the good old United States
has gone sour, our choices now just prattling brats, raised
on money, power, and privilege with virtually no idea of what
real leadership requires. It takes more than stirring speeches
and a military background of bombing foreigners. It takes
more than telling America's millions one thing and then going
behind our backs and doing another. Knowing my audience, I'll
keep this simple and narrow it down to two things. A real
president must not be afraid to be right. A real president
must not be afraid to be wrong. Memorize that.
Two
things. That's all. Start at the beginning. Don't be afraid
to be right. Obviously, a real leader must believe in what
he says. He must do what he thinks is right regardless of
what public opinion, Congress, or even his pet dog tells him
to do. Don't ignore what other people say but believe in yourself.
Maybe some confidence counseling will help our leaders with
this problem. Now, most politicians don't have a problem with
this one, even if it's not as easy as it sounds. President
Bush showed some real chutzpah when he went after Saddam Hussein
despite the protests of the majority of the United Nations.
Good for him. He did what he thought was right and now he's
not a popular man throughout the rest of the world.
The
same goes for Prime Minister Blair; in a country where practically
nobody supported going into Iraq, Blair believed that the
war was the right thing to do and he just did it. Aside from
making Nike proud, Blair and Bush both showed the courage
to reject popular opinion and just went with their gut feelings
about Iraq. And now, near-civil war is erupting throughout
Iraq, Bush's popularity keeps falling, and more than likely,
Blair won't be living at Number 9 Downing Street for much
longer. They did, however, do what they believed was right
and now they are reaping the consequences of those actions.
Unfortunately,
a leader can be wrong. No matter who your consigliere is,
whether he be God, Allah, or Madame Cleo, you will be wrong
sometimes. Depend on it. What separates the truly great presidents
from the lackluster ones is how they handle it. We all know
people who can't be wrong; they piss us off like nothing else.
Even when you back them into a corner and prove they messed
up, they don't give up. That or they switch their position
without ever acknowledging they were wrong in the first place,
arguing they always supported the other side, despite all
evidence to the contrary. Or they even start blaming other
people around them for their mistakes, saying they didn't
have the proper information, they were advised poorly, or
their opponents are out to get them. These people are not
leaders—they're cowards. Real leaders are not afraid
of being wrong, and when they are wrong, they accept their
error and move on.
This
is where most presidents fail. Sadly, it's because they're
human and nobody wants to be wrong, especially in front of
the whole world; that, however, is what a great president
must be able to do. Really, I want them to be human; I think
we all do. Please accept the fact that you will be wrong,
Mr. President; we won't impeach you and we won't hate you.
Actually, if you make a mistake as president and admit it,
I'll be impressed. That's a man who can be humble even when
he's the most powerful person on the planet. That's incredible.
Some
people will argue that admitting your mistakes shows weakness.
Fine, show some weakness. You're human and it's allowed. But
also remember what your mother used say about how you should
always learn from your mistakes and failures. She was right.
A leader who can admit his blunder and change his position
is a far better leader than one who refuses to admit the mistake
in the first place. If he changes his mind, our country's
off in the right direction; if he doesn't, we're stuck hating
a president because he just can't get off his high horse and
accept his blunder.
We've
got to encourage this behavior in our current crop of racehorses.
Candidates should state their positions and stand firm. We're
nothing without a president who will do what he thinks is
right. But they've got to remember to believe in their positions
until they're proven wrong; there's no shame in changing one's
mind. The key is being strong enough to admit it. The key
to being a real leader is being strong enough to admit it
