Metuchen Musings
‘Pay-to-play’ just a fancy term for plain old bribery
J. Aden Lewis In his brilliant essay, "Politics and the English Language" George Orwell wrote, "If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought." Thus, every time I see the phrase "pay-to-play" — the phrase used by politicians and newspapers to describe a specific practice of political corruption in New Jersey — I feel queasy.
My little cousin "pays-to-play" video games at Chuck-e-Cheese; I "pay-to-play" basketball at my local YMCA; my mother "pays-to-play" golf. In New Jersey politics, however, the term "pay-to-play" isn’t referring to fun and games.
On the contrary, it refers to a disgraceful truth in our state political culture: If individuals pay politicians, they get to play with taxpayer money. Simply put, a large campaign donation can purchase a lucrative no-bid state contract.
So, with respect to Orwell — the great champion of honesty in political language — let’s stop referring to this practice by its cutesy name, and start referring to it by a word that reflects its true nature: bribery. And until the practice is abolished, let’s call it what it is: bribery.
The ancient Greeks, who invented our political language, created a term for a government that serves the privileged few — oligarchy. They also created a term describing a government existing to serve the wealthy elite — plutocracy. The systematic bribery (No, wait, it’s called "pay to play!") presently occurring in New Jersey (and even more obscenely in our nation’s capital) could be described by a word that Orwell might have invented if he were alive today — plutoligarchy.
Yet Aristotle himself believed that politics is the highest professional calling one can undertake. He reasoned that legislators and governors, because they create laws that affect so many citizens, have the potential to do the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people.
In Aristotle’s ideal society, referred to as a "democracy," politicians are elected by the "demos," or the people, to serve their fellow citizens in an enlightened way, promoting justice, equity, tolerance, and the common good.
Bribery does not promote the common good.
This year, our New Jersey legislators and Gov. McGreevy again had the opportunity to curtail the "pay-to-play" system. Yet last week, they announced that a compromise could not be reached. If they think we’re not watching closely, they’re wrong.
In the unlikely event that our elected leaders manage to pass meaningful ethics reform this year, it will be much easier to watch "The Sopranos" when it airs on March 7. As in past seasons, I assume that Tony Soprano will continue his "pay-to-play" relationship with Assemblyman Zellman. If no reform passes, however, Assemblyman Zellman will continue to be the least fictitious character on the show.
J. Aden Lewis is a resident of Metuchen