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OpinionSeptember 24, 1995

If authors of political columns, such as this one, were perfectly honest with their readers, they would occasionally own up to the fact that unerringly finding fault with some segment of American life, public governance or political institution in the 1990s, day in and day out and month after month, becomes a challenging burden, not to mention a monotonous, virtually useless literary exercise...

If authors of political columns, such as this one, were perfectly honest with their readers, they would occasionally own up to the fact that unerringly finding fault with some segment of American life, public governance or political institution in the 1990s, day in and day out and month after month, becomes a challenging burden, not to mention a monotonous, virtually useless literary exercise.

The rules of political commentary are relatively simple. First the writer must locate a problem that, if not resolved within the next 48 hours, will surely throw the state or nation into a self-destruct pattern from which it will never recover. Having singularly identified a problem which none of his colleagues has been bright enough to recognize, much less solve, the writer is expected to provide answers in the remaining paragraphs that not only meet the requirements of common sense but which, when brilliantly dissected by the author, are both workable and desirable.

As might be expected, there are some nuances to this craft that are mandatory, particularly if the writer has some expectation of regularly producing meaningful columns in the future. One deserves particular mention: the need for the author, despite his fervent convictions, to remain relatively mentally stable during political perusings. Commentators who become so emotionally involved in their pursuit of truth that they lose all semblance of rationality do tend to come across as ideological crazies who alienate more often than convince.

The ideological left and the ideological right occasionally become so wrapped up in their personal beliefs that they leave no room for rationality, a dangerous practice that soon gives the writer a well-deserved reputation as a fruitcake.

When writing about government, either in Jefferson City or Washington, I seem never to be at a loss of excoriation. It is reassuringly simple to find fault with even the most benign enterprise, be it the State Fair or the number of coffee makers in legislative offices. The motto of the muckraker is that politics is inherently bad and thus anyone engaged in political activity has been morally discolored. The easy part is to identify what's wrong in our capitals, for there are always enough moral scofflaws in society and a fair share gravitate toward that part of show business known as public service.

The difficult part is finding effective, and realistic, ways to restore all the social and moral ideals that mankind possesses, without imposing a set of behaviors and values on those who may not choose them. It is difficult to restore values if the players don't know the rules. It is almost impossible to make honest men from those determined to be dishonest. It is extremely hard to deal with men and women who believe they have somehow inherited an agenda that calls for the nurturing of all the poor among us or take another direction and call for the abolition of all governmental assistance.

Writers can always find fault, whether they turn to the left or the right. Blaming either direction for society's ills and degradations is relatively simple and almost always satisfying, particularly if the targets embrace a different philosophy. Is there a columnist alive who has not ended his words with a warning against the excesses of the political opposition and considered his task a success? Those of us who are without sin, let us not cast our jeremiads too far for fear of moral dilution.

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The real trick of writing political commentary is producing a logical solution for what ails the state or nation at the moment. It is possible, as some have proved year after year, to find the devil residing exclusively with the enemy, but the value is not in identifying misdeeds of the misguided but in directing an equitable search for workable solutions.

The problem facing society, day in and day out, is to link the collective rights of this magnificent nation with the responsibilities that are inherent in our freedoms. One of the worst words in a democratic society is "entitlements," a term that must have come to some political leader while he was under the influence of alcohol or crack, or both. Various groups among us speak, sometimes unceasingly, about their entitlements, whether in the form of welfare assistance or tax breaks, whether the beneficiaries are corporate or indigent. To say, in a democratic society, that one is deserving of an entitlement is to claim a right without responsibility, a gift without paying a price.

The fundamental truth of this nation we call the United States is that none of us is entitled to anything save those granted under our legal charter. We are entitled to the right of free speech, freedom of religion, assembly and petition, and we are entitled to change these rights but only by due process. Until this occurs, we are entitled to no special favors, no treatment that elevates us at the expense of all the rest. Until we recognize this truth, corrections within our society are only temporary, never permanent.

Whether one believes in minority rights or majority rules, the simple truth is that in a truly democratic society there are no minorities. Like rights and responsibilities, this is a given in a society in which each member is equal, each is free within the limits of the law, without the right to demand privileges that are not extended to all the rest.

Those who are not dedicated to responsibilities along with rights, those who claim special privilege for a few or even the majority, these are the real political problems of the day. Forget budget deficits, trimming medical payments, campaign reform and all the rest, for none can be resolved beyond the environment of a society that takes as its standard a constitutional democracy that so many pay homage to and so few rigorously observe and practice.

As a nation, we can solve any dilemma only if we are determined to be a part of the solution, not the problem. If this occurs, we writers are out of business. Can you think of a better incentive to succeed?

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

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