Well, I suppose some of that does happen, but what is really going on is a complex shifting mixture of competing alliances and personalities representing different interests, struggling for power and wealth.

In other words, politics is like economics, and inseparably related to it. In fact, politics could be defined as the mechanism by which men control economics. This is pretty obvious when we study history, but as we get closer to home, in space or time, we tend to believe we are somehow different.

I don’t think this is necessarily bad, or even unavoidable, as long as there is no violence, as many people as possible have a voice in the process, no one is left out, and no one faction gets too big or abusive of the others for too long. It also helps if there is some set of rules, a legal framework or constitution, that discourages too much concentration of power in one place.

But make no bones about it, under all those togas, powdered wigs and knee britches, top hats and frock coats, Armani suits and all those flowery speeches and upright principles are merchants, planters and lawyers who are ruthlessly pursuing their own agendas, and those of their friends, at the expense of everyone else. The honest ones have convinced themselves that what’s best for them is what’s best for everybody. The crooked ones don’t care who suffers as long as they get what they want. That much hasn’t changed.

Anyone who tells you any different is lying, a fool, or both.

But that’s how politicians define politics. The question is, how would a human define it?

Americans might find it interesting that Canadian high schools do in fact cover the structure of American politics (it’d be silly, of course, to pretend to ignore the 900 lb gorilla, especially when it lives next door). I remember it being quite objective and fact-based, part of a long comparative government arc in social studies class. That probably stands as my first serious introduction to US politics. I enjoyed it tremendously, but have since preferred the study of history to that of politics (despite the obvious and extensive cross-over). I’ve always thought that if economics is “the dismal science,” then I don’t want to know how one might describe politics.

This isn’t about the media, or even about Palin. This is all about money and power. Once you understand that, American politics makes perfect sense.

Such people begin to believe their own propaganda, even things they originally knew were not true. So it’s not surprising that they became convinced that the parallel dimension “Bearded Palin” they’d invented as a political weapon was the reality.

And mistakes were made.

But rewriting reality becomes second nature for such people. They’ll have forgotten this fiasco in a week. Unfortunately for them, a lot of other people won’t have.