The Boston Tea Party was About Self-Government, Not No-Government

In the United States, we had a Tea Party because we were objecting to a government that was taxing us without representation.  This began a battle that became a war that became a question – is self-government possible? 

Plato wrote about the City State in the Republic and suggested that the order of the citizens soul should be modeled on the organization of the ideal state, and the state, in turn, should be ruled by the citizen who most closely resembled the ideal State. 

Freud was much more realistic.  He, too, believed that civilization would mirror the person, but the people that he knew intimately were complicated critters who were driven by very basic biological needs that could, at best, be diverted to higher purposes.  When this happens, it is for the good of all, but the individual does not get all that he would, especially if he were strongest.

In order for the individual (or the state) to function optimally when working in a civilized context, it must divide against itself.  This is where Freud's ego versus the id emerges.  And it is where a governing body that "rules" over the population comes in.  When the ego simply capitulates to the id, or the governing body does not exercise restraint, chaos ensues.

We are blessed to have governor in Ohio who is pre-tea party Republican.  He believes, unlike our president, that the executive’s job is to govern.  Every day during this crisis, Mike DeWine takes the podium at 2:00.  In calm tones and with an interpreter for the deaf, he describes what steps have been taken by his government and by the people of his state to address the Corona Virus situation.

Today he noted the manufacturers that have been able to shift on relatively short notice to produce products that are needed in our state and elsewhere to address the pandemic.  He highlighted the start of production today of face masks that will be produced at the rate of 5,000 per day by a company that had been working to produce unrelated products.

He then went on to proclaim – in understated and sober terms – that we are doing much better than the predictions had suggested that we might.  He gave the credit for this to the people of the state of Ohio who have engaged much more aggressively in social distancing than those who came up with the models had expected that they would.  He cautioned us that we need to continue doing this for the foreseeable future, but he also let us know that his staff was beginning to work on plans for how we get from here to a state of normalcy when that can occur.

He spoke genuinely, forthrightly and from the heart.  He could have taken credit for how well have done.  In one poll, his leadership of Ohio led him to be rated the best governor in responding to the crisis.  But he genuinely thanked the people of Ohio for taking this situation seriously.  Later in day, the President read from a script thanking the American people, but his insincerity was tangible.

This Republican governor harks back to a time before the tea party hijacked the party.  He represents a politics as the act of governing – of slowing and modulating the energy of the state so that the state as a whole functions optimally.  This requires sacrifice on the part of individuals.  And, when this sacrifice is shared, there is a sense of shared ownership of the outcome.

It also relies on the individuals to police themselves.  In an earlier talk, the governor, when asked by a reporter whether police would pull people over to give them tickets for disobeying the law, the governor said that laws have always served an educative function.  They tell us what is right or wrong.  Thankfully we generally choose to obey the law.

Meanwhile, the President, as he often is, was late to deliver his daily address.  In his daily addresses, he has blamed others for his failings and provided false solace.  He has downplayed the threat rather than acknowledging it.  He has undermined the role of government in governing in this crisis and throughout his presidency.  He has actively worked to dismantle the agencies that would limit our functioning.

Our governor is justifiably proud of the citizens who have engaged in self-restraint.  I heard a French psychoanalysis express similar pride (and not a little disbelief) at the French self-restraint, noting this is not considered a national trait.  But it was Jacque Rousseau who called attention to the need for a social contract, and our founding fathers heeded that call.  We choose to be citizens.  And we restrain ourselves because it is in our best interests to work together – not at cross purposes. 

This president appeals to our darker angels.  He appeals to our belief that our unchecked actions will bring us greater reward.  This is true in the very short term.  And certainly if one has the levers of power at his disposal, one can use them to his own benefit.  But should those who have been promised they will be used for them experience themselves as being disenfranchised and not helped, they will not restrain themselves – and there will be hell to pay for anyone who has disillusioned them.  And this president has disillusioned those who have had faith in him. 

Trump, ironically, embodies the unconstrained Freudian human.  He acts out of self-interest alone.  Those who would also act without restraint – who would make the world according to their own desires – have identified with him and felt he was their champion. 

Freud maintained that following the rule of law was the first pre-requisite to civilization.  Trump’s ability to flout legislative law has emboldened him to believe that he can flout the laws of nature.  He disregards advice from those who have studied those laws. 

In flouting legislative law, Trump has been able to count on political power to keep the legislators from enforcing their own laws.  He imagines himself to be able to hold the same sway over natural law, but in this he is proving to be sadly mistaken.

Unfortunately we are all paying for his hubris.  This is in the process of becoming a national tragedy.   

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