What Is An Idealist

Lawmakers should view classic film about service, courage

Mr. Smith, we need you today.

Possible government default with Social Security and veterans benefits not getting paid, arguments over the debt ceiling and taxes and argumentative behavior and name calling goes on and on and on. Whew!

With this bantering surrounding us, my wife and I relaxed the other night and viewed the 1939 film, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington . What timing for seeing this classic masterpiece. In it, the innocence of the movie's namesake, Sen. Jefferson Smith, set the stage for a showdown of good versus evil, innocence against corruption.

Smith had been the head of a group of Boy Rangers in an unnamed western state and was appointed by the governor to fill the seat of a senator who died unexpectedly. The governor thought Smith would be the least offensive and least controversial of candidates and would also be easy to manipulate due to his inexperience.

The plot was simple, the story and script were very well done and the acting was superb. Our viewing of this film coincided with the reality of what is happening in Washington today as Congress and the president wrangle over the issues of budget reduction, tax reform, debt ceiling, government shutdowns, etc.

I immediately drew some comparisons of the film's conflicts and the dilemma we face today with a polarized government. In my lifetime I have never heard so much negativity from both sides of the political aisle and from the White House.

Please don't think I am judging the president or any particular congressman or senator or political party. Judging their performance is something I believe all of us should do on an individual and informed basis. But, like many Americans, I am very disappointed with what I see and hear from most of Washington these days. And I firmly believe it would be beneficial to our nation if every elected official, from the president to the least experienced Congress member, along with all their staff members, watched Mr. Smith Goes to Washington .

I further believe it would be inherently positive for our nation and its citizens if all of our elected officials observed the lessons of truth, honesty and the goodness that Smith embodied as the senator who came to Washington with no political experience nor political baggage. He wanted to do something good for the nation and its citizens and not create legislation to benefit a particular group or lobbyists who would give him money to represent their interests.

Why You Definitely Want to Be an Idealist and How You Can Become One

Are you an idealist?

According to the formal definition, an idealist is a visionary who pursues high purposes and goals; someone that continually strives for what is possible regardless of what the current reality may be.

Or, in plain English … an idealist is someone that goes for what they really want and believes they are going to get it regardless of what the people around them may say and regardless of if what they want seems far fetched.

So, would you say that you are an idealist?

Well, the reality is we were all born to be idealists.

We were always supposed to understand our potential and everything we are really capable of and allow that understanding to continually push us to go for what we really want.

Our idealism is supposed to be a constant source of motivation and inspiration to keep pushing us forward .

But, let’s be real, being an idealist is not always easy.

The doubts can really set in and your idealism can be put to the test, especially during …

those times when you want something so badly and work so hard, but at the end of the day, you come up short …

those times when you finally get what you want, but then look up and it is no longer there and has slipped through your fingers …

those times when you feel completely overwhelmed by life and everything going on around you.

That is when the real doubts come bubbling to the surface and if you allow it to happen, your idealism is chipped away at bit by bit.

And, that’s why we have to continually make sure our idealism is kept in tact at all times and repair any damage we may notice. We can’t let it be chipped away at and look up one day and realize we have more in common with cynics and skeptics than we do with idealists.

We never want to lose touch with the part of ourselves that believes in possibilities and is inspired and motivated by the fact that so many possibilities always exist.

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