Populists, elites & distrust

Dr. Shawn WhatleyElites tell us what to think. They work to shape society in their own image, while looking down on the rest of us. Is there such a thing as an elite, or is it just anarchist name-calling? If elites do exist, are they always bad? Is populism the solution to elitism?Elite: (noun) a group of persons who by virtue of position or education exercise much power or influence—members of the ruling elite.We assume that politics runs on structure and process. This is partly right but mostly wrong. Government is the sum character of the people inside. Constitutional democracy is necessary but not sufficient for freedom. It needs good people to serve and lead, and good people to vote and pay taxes.Everyone cheats and lies, sometimes, by ignorance or design. But if everyone cheats and lies all the time, trust evaporates. Government cannot function. Democracy ends.PopulistsAbused voters often elect populists. Tired of “elites” telling them what to think, voters tell the elites where to go.Voters do not like being told they are stupid and immoral. Political sermonizing creates insiders and outcasts. This builds distrust, and distrust breeds populism."The populist is one who wishes to solve all political problems by appealing to the will of the people believing the people to have instincts and reactions which, if properly tapped, will be alone sufficient to provide guidance and authority to the Statesman."—R. ScrutonThis is fine, but populists go further:“The term [populist] is now also used in a somewhat pejorative sense, to denote the behaviour of the politician who appeals at every juncture to popular sentiment, and enlists ignorant opinion to his side, even in matters of utmost delicacy where the people lack the expertise to make a sound decision."In this sense the populist has much in common with the demagogue and his type is prominent in many nationalist movements in the former communist countries.”Populists show up on both left and right. William Buckley said that he’d rather entrust government to the first 400 names in the Boston phone directory than to the faculty of Harvard University.But we cannot determine the dose of digoxin by democracy. Patients only want a say in whether or not to digitize. They want to set the direction of treatment, not prescribe a dose.Leaders can hold strange ideas so long as they are collaborative, humble and honest.Sanctimonious leaders can ruin everything. The justice of their cause makes them abandon the cause of justice. They trample tradition. They remake society.They often hold no qualms in using dishonesty, patronage or bribery. After all, revolution requires sacrifice.Unprincipled elites do not make good leaders, and people with principles do not make good populists. Principles inevitably put politicians at odds with the mob.DistrustDo virtuous elites exist? Can we envision a political leader of high moral character who acts on principle?Until the 1970s, Canadians trusted government. They believed in representative democracy. Trust started to erode in the 70s and led to calls for referenda and more direct democracy. Everyone wanted a say in everything. Voter involvement is good; until we start voting on the dose of digoxin.Ruling elites can lose touch and become isolated in their own imagination. Sleep walking towards utopia, they eventually spark a populist revolt. Revolution amputates too much and makes recovery much longer.After 10 years of sub-inflationary increases to hospital funding, six straight years of funding cuts to physician services, and patient wait times measured in years, the current Ontario government invites revolt.Sprinkling funding over a buffet of handouts before an election might win votes but will not avoid ruin.We need government built on principles and virtue: collaboration, humility, honesty. We need government to help, not guide. We need politicians to work with doctors to improve healthcare, not tell us how to provide healthcare.We do not need politicians to force grand ideas onto healthcare just because they got elected.We do not need activist elites who seek to redesign the system in their own image.Anything could happen in the June election. No party can guarantee victory. But I think voters know what they want.We are waiting for someone who promises to serve and listen. We want a government that will work with us and not enforce their elite designs whether we want them or not.Dr. Shawn Whatley is president of the Ontario Medical Association. He has worked in emergency medicine, as a coroner, in a vein clinic, and as a surgical assistant. He also held a leadership role at a large suburban hospital. He now practises family medicine in rural Ontario. Visit his blog at shawnwhatley.com.Opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect those of CanadianHealthcareNetwork.ca or its parent company.

Populists, elites & distrust

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