When Swinging Fists Meet Presidential Noses

Did you hear about the British Parliament member who slapped a petition in President Obama's face that read: "Down with your ugly new fascism!" ?

Well, no, it didn't actually happen; but if it did, the press on both sides of the Atlantic would have heralded it as the great Anglo-American right to dissent. And so it is. However, living in an age when rights rule, we don't often hear enough about the obligations that come with those rights. As one classic description tried to put it: "The rights of my fist end when it meets the rights of your nose." In the case of political dissent, these rights and obligations are not always that clear cut, but still there are obligations that go with these rights.

Take the current dissent from Congress and the media. This president's agenda for reform is so sweeping, it has predictably ignited equally sweeping dissents. From the sedate halls of Congress to the shouting pundits of Fox News. He's asking for bold changes to everything from banking to bombing, from energy to education , from domestic health-care to international hegemony. When your bite is that sharp, you just know there will be a lot of powerful teeth biting back.

OK, no one questions this constitutional principle of dissent. But everyone should question its practice. Especially in a time when this indispensable principle slams fist-first into some equally indispensable demands for crisis management. This is where the loyalty of the Loyal Opposition gets tested. In a free society, it is free to express its dissent freely. But not care-freely. To put that another way, its opposition should be constructive more than obstructive. If not, what then is its purpose?

In a democracy, the courts and the police don't usually decide this distinction. The people do. The active citizen asks is the criticism I'm hearing factual and fair or fantasy and fanatic? In an age when dissent has so many more forums than ever envisioned by the Founding Fathers -- newspapers, networks, cable channels, blogsites, nationwide demonstrations -- there is need for a new delicate balance. Inviting dissent up to but not beyond the point of paralysis.

About this time of year, you hear fans saying, "Life is like a baseball game...." Well, not really. But there is one lesson to consider. In the dugout, the staff may argue, debate and dissent; but when the manager sends in his closer to save the day, case closed! At least until the closer blows it. Right now, the people still support the closer they picked by a margin even wider than their vote last November. For now, lets give him the ball and try cheering more than jeering.

That's usually the way you win the big ones!