The Politics of the Playground
By Paul A. Ibbetson
(Also published by The Post Chronicle in April 2006)

Currently, in the world in which we live a major focus has been centered on the subject of national security. For Americans, this subject has become a collective concern due to the events surrounding 9-11. Few argue this point; however, the particular strategies whether in the form of enhanced border security, the Patriot Act, or the War in Iraq, have been diverse and resulted in contentious reaction. As important to this ongoing debate as the physical actions taken, is the mindset of the government and the general public regarding national security during the process. It is in this highly dynamic environment that the “Politics of the Playground” is forwarded. Before this concept is advanced it should be noted that the dilemma of national security is truly complex in nature. Acknowledgment of this complexity is a salient beginning point for not only critiquing the struggles of the current administration, but also when reflecting on the actions and in-actions of previous administrations when dealing with this subject. It is with the understanding of the complexity of implementing national security that the general public can judge past, current, and future administrations fairly as well as decide where public support should be given.

A second important point that should be stressed is that giving credence to the complex nature of national security does not require eliminating the implementation of practical strategies, or the usage of common sense. It is within the arena of what is the proper “mindset” for engaging in national security activities that has become the most bitterly fought battleground to date. Conservatives have been attacked for having an overly simplistic mindset on national security. The most salient example of this belief is found in the constant liberal media attack on President Bush. President Bush has been stereotyped as not only simplistic in his actions on national security, but worse yet, dangerous to the future of the country with his straight forward approach to dealing with terrorist threats. It is interesting to note that while the President has been repeatedly lambasted as incompetent, his straight forward non-nuanced approached has been embraced by the majority of Americans during extremely tenuous times. Recently this identification with the George Bush philosophy has seen a rollercoaster ride of peaks and valleys in popular support. Many explain the current low poll numbers as the president’s strategy of avoiding an aggressive rebuttal of the liberal media’s onslaught of his character and competence on most occasions. In reality, current concerns over the President’s ability to properly prosecute national security matters reflects uncertainty within the conservative populace that encompasses a much greater proportion of the nation than is ever reported. It is in reminding conservative minded individuals why the Bush no-nonsense approach to national security rings true to the hearts of most Americans that the door is opened for the analogy of the “Politics of The Playground.” This analogy should in no way be considered a short-cut to thinking. On the contrary, in the same vein as the President has injected the usage of common sense into a difficult endeavor, the “Politics of the Playground” offers an easily identifiable concept that is applicable to the complex issues we face today.

To enter this realm, one must first take a mental journey back to the elementary school playground. This mental journey differs for every reader for many factors, but once there, we find that we all share many of the same memories that are very applicable to life today. With that image focused in your mind we dissect the impacts of the “playground” then and its modern day relevance to issues such as national security. For most, the “playground” took on an almost magical aura as a place where several hours of what might be considered compulsory study were released in a thirty-minute exultation of freedom. To the mind of the eager student, this was freedom from the rigors of class work as there were no “spelling bees” or “math quizzes” on the playground. In reality, and totally unknown to the student experiencing playground “bliss”, the recess period served as much as the testing grounds for classroom knowledge as it did a refreshing period. For our purposes, the “playground” takes on a deeper meaning in the form of transactions found in daily life. This analogy of the playground as daily life is applicable when identifying the participants at the micro-level (as individuals) or at the macro-level (as countries). For our purposes, we will use our understanding of how we as individuals acted and reacted on the playground as life to take us to the macro-level were the same analogy can be applied to the U.S. as a whole.

First, the playground is an arena of laws, contracts, and negotiations. This is seen in the selection of members for group activities such as kickball or baseball. If you recall these negotiations were often highly contentious, as everyone wanted to win the contest of the day. On the playground, laws came in the form of rules that applied for all members and everyone was obligated to follow the rules of every game. Violators of rules were seldom tolerated by team members, as it threatened the validity of the game. That is to say, high priority was given to following the laws as everyday baseball game was the World Series and every football game was the Super bowl on the playground. This mentality is reflected at the governmental level of the U.S. today. The U.S. currently enters into contracts with multiple global partners and violations of contracts are expected to bring repercussions. Recently, within the context of national security, this logical (playground) reaction has been drawn into question by liberals. One example is the 17 resolution violations by Saddam Hussein preceding the war in Iraq. Liberals have attacked the administration for enforcing the repercussions clearing stated within U.N. resolutions. Violators on the (playground) eventually found themselves out of the game. Saddam Hussein now finds himself in the same predicament.

The “Politics of the Playground” also incorporates the modern media. Today the media can be most adequately identified as the playground “tattler”. As with the media, the tattler was an endless source of information. While the class tattler disseminated information in all forums (playground, classroom, lunchroom, bathroom, etc), the playground was the most fertile ground for information collection. When reflecting back to the playground, as with today, the tattler sometimes related helpful information. Simple examples would include who was sick, who was in trouble, what was for lunch and so on. The tattler was all too eager to educate students on the events of the day. However, at times, more often than not, the tattler served as a tool of mis-information and the creator of turmoil. When dealing with destructive forces, such as the playground bully, the tattler could cause much unneeded calamity.

No analogy of the playground would be complete without examining the “bully”. Unfortunately, a recollection of the playground bully is all too easy to mentally formulate because of the negative impact this individual(s) had on the playground dynamics. First, a quick reflection on some of the characteristics of the playground bully. What is sometimes forgotten is that the playground bully was not always the physically biggest kid. However, the bully was always the most aggressive and most unpredictable. A constant element of danger fell upon everyone within grasping distance of the bully. Liberals often take the stance that the U.S. is the bully, and by default deserves the assaults that have befallen the country. This is often articulated indirectly by the stress given to trying to understand those who are attempting to destroy the country over practical survival strategies. Today, the bullies in the world playground are radical Islamic extremists. As with the playground bully, radical Islamists follow an irrational philosophy that is destructive in all forms. Another aspect of the bully is that he or she often had lackeys in tow. However, the followers of the bully never received equal status and were often punished arbitrarily along with other playground members. In short, safety was never assured in the bully’s camp, at best it was delayed. On the world playground, Spain has attempted to find grace with Islamic radicals, if not the liberal factions within its own country, by pulling out of Iraq. Israel has followed suit in its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in the hopes of finding (bully) peace. The most salient example may be that of France. France in recent days has shown itself all too willing to breach its alliances with the U.S. and coalition forces in the War on Terror. Yet, despite these actions, France finds itself battling radical Islamic upheavals within its own country. Simply put, capitulation to the bully has not excluded France from victimization. Examples throughout history are abundant of attempts to appease the bully. They equal a lengthy historical list of absolute failures. Recall the playground, how many accounts do you have of the bully making peace and playing amicably alongside everyone else? That’s right; the bully was always the bully. This point is often exacerbated by the element of the tattler (media). We see a common sense tactic of the Bush administration to often avoid the media. While this tactic can be debated, it follows a general logic incorporated by all students on the playground. On the playground, often one eye is kept on the bully while the other eye is on the tattler. Unfortunately, many times it appears that these two players appear to blur in identification.

Of course, everyone tries to avoid the bully. The question is what to do when that fails? One option to acquiring safety, and hence normality to the playground is seeking help from the “teacher/recess monitor”. This individual can be equated with the United Nations. As with the United Nations, the teachers functions on the playground, in theory, to maintain fairness and stability. While often wrapped in good intentions, everyone quickly learns that the teacher is completely ineffective in policing a bully. As soon as the caring eyes of the teacher stray, the bully strikes, and strikes again. Security in all categories of playground life as in real life which include the following comparisons: recess activities (economics), personal space (border security), personal safety (national security) come about through coalitions of allies, and inevitably through individual action.

It is truly hoped that your memory of the playground bully comes from the recollection of observer and not victim. If you saw these playground abuses from the vantage point of observer you can recall feeling lucky that the bully had not picked you as one of his or her “favorites”. If you came out unscathed, luck may have been a factor because the bully is well known for spreading misery. For the U.S. on the world playground, anonymity is not an option. In many ways, the U.S. in recent history (1990s) has taken repeated beatings despite being the largest kid on the playground. When the bully terrorizes the “big kid” at recess, it is disheartening to everyone. This was because the victim had the capacity to stop the threat but chose not to (on the playground, this is usually because of fear). For the U.S., this has comes about due to the emasculating effects of liberalism. Secondly it was disheartening because it reinforced the futility of future resistance by others. Currently, under President Bush, the country is showing an attitude of the kid who has decided enough is enough and decided to swing. It is these embedded ideals that draw people to the Bush common sense approach to national security. These ideals are unshakable to most Americans as they have been reinforced since the days of the playground. It is the brilliance and not the limitation of the conservative ideology that allows the implementation of common sense approaches as seen in the “Politics of the Playground” into the complex arena of national security. The saving grace for all of us is that the bell has not rung, school is not out and the chance for additional learning is still attainable. This is fortunate as the U.S. faces a formidable bully with more than a few lackeys in tow.

Paul A. Ibbetson is a published author and lecturer on the Patriot Act. He is a former Chief of Police of Cherryvale, Kansas, and member of the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Paul received his Bachelor's and Master's degree in Criminal Justice at Wichita State University, and is currently completing his PhD. in Sociology at Kansas State University. Paul is the author of the books "Living Under The Patriot Act: Educating A Society" and "Feeding Lions: Sharing the Conservative Philosophy, in a Politically Hostile World" (both available for purchase at Paul's own book store or at Amazon.com, as well as other major book outlets) and is the host of the award winning radio show "The Conscience of Kansas" on The Wildcat 91.9 f.m. - KSDB, Manhattan.