404 Errors and Liberal Politics

You've no doubt encountered the ominous (some would say omnipresent) 404 "page cannot be found" error while surfing the Internet. Most people blame this type of anomalous event (some would say ubiquitous annoyance) on user error or incompetent webmasters.

In truth, the 404 error is a way to handle exceptions. Every web server has a default message that it will display if the user requests a page that doesn't exist. This is how websites "fail gracefully." Application programmers, mechanical engineers, and even chemical weapons experts know how to handle exceptions, and fail, gracefully. Not so for left leaning policy advocates.

Progressive politicians demand that exceptions be handled as the key driver for all policies. A liberal cannot accept "failure," graceful or otherwise. In their world, there can be no exceptions. Exceptions not only dictate the breadth and scope of their policies but also signify the success of those policies. Whether expanding abortion rights or promoting OSHA standards, no sparrow falls that the left will not defend through political means. Take automobile safety standards. As one advocate recently put it: "One death is one too many deaths." Thus, auto standards can never be too stringent. In fact, we might as well do away with the combustion engine, right Al? But what about coconut trees? Is 28 deaths per year by coconuts dropping too many? Should we drive at 5 miles per hour? Can their really be no deaths with automobiles?

Thus liberals can feel good about themselves and place the exception (in this case automobile deaths) as the basis for more policies. They place themselves in the role of God, but with a twist. "He knows the sparrow's fall" The progressive advocate adds "and He catches him mid flight to avert his death."

Abortion is another touchpoint of liberal exception handling. Why do liberals so fervently oppose banning partial birth abortions?. Because they can devise an exception that demands inclusion. Thus, they can spout a "what if" story for every needy minority. "What if a girl is raped and hides the pregnancy until the last trimester?" "What if the mother's life is in serious jeopardy?" Of course, the former is a horrific event that we have to deal with, the later is very rare. But does that really dictate that warrant the killing of a nearly fully formed child?

While liberal exception handling is failure of policy conservatives fail to fail gracefully when it comes to ideological discussions. The latest spate of discussion, the Harriet Miers experiment, is a whole 'nother ball game. I hope to discuss this more next week.