Writing Sample #2

[dlingard]

In politics, new ideas are often seen as radical ideas.

Fundamentally, people possess a propensity to resist change. This is especially true in politics where new and innovative ideas often take many years to become acceptable to the majority. A striking example is the vehement political opposition to issues of same-sex marriage and abortion, both of which represent radical ideas challenging the morals and beliefs of great numbers of people. The 1991 implementation of the Goods and Services Tax by the Progressive Conservative Party in Canada is a less contentious issue and serves as an example where introduction of a new idea was seen as radical. While the efficacy of the Goods and Services Tax is still in question, the overwhelming opposition to this new political idea crushed a Progressive Conservative majority government and ousted a great majority of their party members from parliament. John Adam's assertion that "if there is no struggle, there is no progress" reflects well upon the difficult, if not disastrous circumstances of introducing new political ideas.

However, if the introduction of a new political idea that has held a preponderance in the population for some time, then it will certainly receive substantially less opposition. An example was the long-awaited end of apartheid policy in the Republic of South Africa. The introduction of a new political group in 1994 promoting the idea of a new South Africa without apartheid policies was heralded as the end of a racist and oppressive regime.

In matters of politics, ideas and decisions ubiquitous in a population may take many years to culminate into new legislation. Such cases represent situations where new ideas cannot be seen as radical as they have enjoyed unofficial support for a significant amount of time. Denouncing new political ideas as radical often occurs with the introduction of new ideas with which the sensitive grand public is inexpectant.