Memories are still vivid with the image of French President Emmanuel Macron shamelessly replying to one of his fellow citizens who was complaining about unemployment , by telling him straight out " if you want a job , just cross the street and you ' ll find one ". It ' s no secret that leaders who have not experienced significant di culties in their lives can have unrealistic expectations of the people , assuming that members of the su ering rabble must achieve a certain level of performance or overcome di culties without understanding the necessary e ort and support . Also , according to the French president , and this is an ideology shared by the political class , the little people are lazy and don ' t want to do anything , which implies that all the misery endured by the average citizen is simply due to laziness , because the richest or rather the elites are very intelligent and enterprising , to lack any job . But the reality is di erent . Unemployment in a country like France doesn ' t just concern the sub-trades , so it ' s an illusion to think that there aren ' t any graduates of the grandes écoles ( higher education ) who are unemployed , unless the political class believes that a diploma isn ' t enough , but rather the right sect , and powerful friends .
Speaking of powerful friends , here ' s another image that made the headlines a few days ago . The fall of Ali Bongo in Gabon , where in a video he asks his friends to make some noise to bring him back to power , speaking in a language foreign to Gabon ; English . The scene may seem surreal , but it sums up the political class . A conglomerate of false friends , unaware and , above all , inconsistent , who know that they owe the success of their political careers not to the people , as democracy preaches , but to their powerful friends , who know how to manipulate the people through the medias they control , and move the pawns through their influence on the political scene .
In Democracy in 2023 , it ' s not far-fetched to say that the majority of politicians believe that their powerful friends in high places are more important to their careers than the people they are committed to working for in a democratic system .
Politics , especially in the West , is very expensive , and only the very rich have the right to be elected . Financing election campaigns on a national scale can be extremely costly . Some politicians work hard to secure the financial support of wealthy individuals or companies , which , like it or not , makes them beholden to these interests , rather than to the people .
Sectarianism and the influence of obscure networks are not to be outdone , as politicians are always ready to make a deal with the devil for their seats . They often secretly forge alliances and create or join networks to further their careers . These relationships help them navigate the political landscape , win support and achieve their political objectives , which are not always in line with those of democracy or the interests of the people .
Cynicism seems natural on the global political scene , and some people seem not to understand the origins of this cynicism , which is intrinsic to the exercise of political power . How can human beings , or rather the people , think they can have their basic problems solved , by people who are no longer hungry or have never been hungry , to understand their concerns . Since the political class generally pretends to understand their problems , cynicism becomes the norm . And better still , when the same political class knows - powerful friends oblige - that it owes its power not to the people , but to the interests of powerful friends or masters , it ' s logical that some just keep up appearances .
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Flashmag ! Issue 143 August 2023