Politics is everywhere these days. I mean, Facebook, the news, the watercooler, Twitter, comedy, blogs...everywhere. And many people I know swear that they would rather just avoid politics because it just creates friction. Now I'm as anti-conflict as they come pretty much. You can ask my family; I really try to avoid conflict to the point that I really should start standing up and creating it more. But politics? Bring it on. See, for me, this is not just something to be avoided or not. It is a big deal to me. I am almost halfway through my Master in Public Administration (side note brag: the program in which I'm enrolled is now ranked SIXTH in the nation!). Public policy, politics, public management issues are all a daily part of my thinking. That being said, I want to let you in on some information you should know to really consider the whole Beghazi thing.
The Master's program in which I'm enrolled is an online program. We are required to show up in person twice during the two year program. The first residency weekend was at the beginning of the Fall semester last year (coincidentally, the Benghazi attack happened during this same weekend). I met the most amazing people who are also enrolled in this program. We all introduced ourselves the first day and told why we were pursuing this degree. Every. single. one. of these students (about 80, I think) basically wants to change the world (or their industry, or the government, or one challenge) for the better. These are amazing, giving people. We will not likely get rich. You can make a lot more money in the private sector than the public sector. We will not likely be famous. We are not in this for those reasons. These students are in it because they see how things can be better and they want to be part of that.
Two of my new-found friends in the program had a conversation which I didn't know about till later. They discussed the possibility of public service such as working at an embassy or for the State Department as part of their futures (or that of our classmates). They discussed that this career path is not without risk. We get it: we could get hurt. But the funny thing about people who are devoting their lives and careers to serving their country and their fellow citizens: they are willing to accept risks. THAT is what you need to know about US Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and the 3 others killed in the infamous Benghazi attack. They knew the risks and went anyway.
Does this mean it's ok to turn our backs on ambassadors and other public servants? Absolutely not. But it needs to be recognized that these individuals are not unlike our armed services in that they serve despite the risks. They should be honored (whether killed or not), but it seems that the current outrage discounts the accepted risks. It also dishonors the public servants to turn the incident into a political issue. If there is a legitimate reason to pursue the investigation of this incident further, I'm unaware of it. It is beating a dead horse at this point. What do we hope to accomplish? I think if everyone could back up and think about what really best honors these individuals, we all might realize it is not turning their deaths into political ammunition.
When I tell people that I eventually would like to enter politics and run for office, I almost invariably get responses of shock and usually jokes. Most people want to know why I would choose to enter that despicable field. As long as we continue to view the entire realm of public service (both political and and the less political appointed positions) as dirty and undesirable, we will have a shortage of willing entrants who will honorably serve. And treating those who are willing to serve their country in this manner only exacerbates the problem.
I just thought you should know.
