MISSOURI WATCH: MIGHT NOT EVERY INTEREST BE SPECIAL?

No serious analysis of the way our democratic form of government works and performs can be concluded these days without at least passing reference to the term "special interests."

No political speech worth its salt misses the opportunity to discuss the pejorative effects of special interests, often accompanied with such clarifying terms as "selfish" or "out of control."

If there is fault to be found with some public program, its systemic failure can most often be traced to special interests that are "bureaucratic" in nature or "myopic" in outlook. At their best, these faults are merely "misguided" and "out of touch with the will of the people."

Is there a commentator or columnist alive who has not finished off an analysis without paying due tribute to the power of the special interests? I know of none, including this one.

It might be wise, therefore, to examine in some detail the composition of these special interests and, if possible, determine what it is about them that constitutes such a grave threat to our constitutional governments, whether they be situated in city halls, county courthouses or state capitals.

By defining special interests as groups that seek to educate, promote, enhance or espouse a particular cause, we can indirectly learn how broad a scope the term encompasses and how universal is the desire to advance an almost limitless number of causes. It is not necessary, at least for this occasion, to define whether the group is beneficial or harmful, but only that it is situated within a democratic, capitalistic, entrepreneurial system such as has been fashioned from concepts visualized by such men as Plato, Burke and Jefferson.

Perhaps no better roster of special interests in Missouri can be found than in the Yellow Pages of the Jefferson City telephone directory. Whether listed as associations, organizations or lobbyists, the number of special interest groups in the state is mind boggling, particularly when the reader recognizes that many others have no central Missouri location and can be found almost anywhere in the state. Here's just a small sampling of dozens and dozens of so-called special interests that exist in close proximity to the seat of government of more than 5.3 million Missourians:

American Civil Liberties Union

Associated Industries of Missouri

Common Cause in Missouri

Conservation Federation of Missouri Independent Colleges

Universities of Missouri

Missouri Advocacy Council for Men and Children

Missouri Association for Social Welfare

Missouri Association of Counties

Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys

Missouri Automobile Dealers Association

Missouri Bankers Association

Missouri Baptist Convention Missouri Bar Association

Missouri Catholic Conference

Missouri Chamber of Commerce

Missouri Association for Primary Health Care

Missouri Dump Truckers Association

Missouri Farm Bureau Federation

Missouri Funeral Directors Association

Missouri AFL-CIO

Mortgage Bankers Association

Rural Missouri Inc.

Taxpayers Research Institute of Missouri

Missouri Hospital Association

Missouri Psychological Association

Missouri Retailers Association

I strongly suspect that as you read that list of only a minuscule portion of these special interest groups, as certified by nothing less than the- telephone directory in Missouri's capital, you recognized a few that you have either joined, been asked to join or sometime wished you had joined, but the list is hardly inclusive. There are at least a handful of these groups that anyone, regardless of age, position or outlook, could be a member of and feel quite comfortable with their particular advocacy.

By the way, the word "advocacy" is simply a modified application of the term "special interest," given the latter's bad reputation at the hands of politicians, the press and partisan opponents. If you represent a "special interest," the connotation is that you are out to fleece the public, rob the public coffers or gain unfair advantage, often at the expense of widows and orphans. On the other hand, if you are an advocate of a cause, you seek to advance the cause of a deserving and under-represented segment of the population.

If we are to accept today's political glossary, the special interests among us are directly responsible for the crisis du jour, and we are constantly being warned these inherently evil and sinister forces will surely do us in unless we harken to the warnings advanced by the advocates.

It is no coincidence that special interests are advocates and that advocates represent special interests -- since one is nearly synonymous with the other. Thoughtful citizens will recognize the similarity and base their conclusions not on the rhetoric of the moment but on the facts presented. No one ever said being a citizen was easy. As Edmund Burke observed more than two centuries ago, "Society must be built by those wise enough to distinguish the differences among concepts, and not by those willing to follow the dictates of ambitious men who are only foolish enough to lead us to destruction."

~Jack Stapleton of Kennett is the editor of Missouri News and Editorial Service.