The editor’s editorial / The challenge of politics from vocabulary to encyclopedia

What we are experiencing – and of which we are responsible and accomplices – is an impressionist politics. A brushstroke and go. Some concepts, which in themselves are beautiful, are becoming vague, not very dense and therefore unrealistic: resilience, inclusiveness, sustainability

Which word, between “right” and “duty”, marks your relationship with the elections the most? What drives you to participate in democracy, to put aside the disappointments you have experienced and those you already know will come? Why do you vote?

If people and contents are the two reference coordinates of our citizenship structure, my feeling is that we have witnessed an electoral campaign that is biased towards people. “I rate the person” is one of the phrases we hear most often; and moreover it works, in the Veneto of a Luca Zaia also voted in the center and left. The citizen, increasingly accustomed to separate voting, goes to the polls with a few basic elements in mind. The face of those who apply, their extra-political history, a few passwords pronounced with more conviction (in reality, more than conviction, it is frequency and insistence that pay off). To choose the mayor, if your opinions are not already subscribed to one side, light factors count. What counts is sincerity and the ability to make people dream a little; what counts is the number of handshakes, the widespread presence in the neighborhoods, the smile at the market stall or between parents in a playground. What counts is the judgment or advice that a reliable friend gave you one day; or the fleeting meeting with one of the candidate people, the impression she made on you.

Here, what we live – and of which we are responsible and accomplices – is an impressionist politics. A brushstroke and go. Some concepts, which in themselves are beautiful, are becoming vague, not very dense and therefore unrealistic: resilience, inclusiveness, sustainability… Then there are the simplifications: smart city, green city, Bostonian city, boh. Which of you has really read the election programs?

Abstention is in all respects a leading party, aiming for an absolute majority. We all become, desolately, more stars and stripes. And it is not a flattering comparison: the percentages of voters collapse, we feel distance from the powers that be and we tend to disregard the administration of public affairs. The professional politics, deep down, likes it: a smaller audience is also more motivated and we talk better with her, the shares to be conquered become more decisive. Each episode is crucial, each opinion group can affect. Squeeze another hand and smile again in front of the eggplant crates – it could be what makes you win.

The new mayor will govern a city that will have to insert more content of merit instead of easy adjectives. In a way, he will have to keep the dictionary handy but also open the encyclopedia. –