It’s just politics, eh? No. It’s not. It’s war. And it’s a fight to the death. As soon as you hear the “just” quip in any conversation you can safely stop listening to everything thereafter.

Everything I know about politics I learned when I was in my 20s working in the excavating and real estate development industry in New York. Back then I was regularly messing around with brutal unions and vindictive governments. It was violence at absolutely every level. When I describe details of the experience I had (survived, actually) to friends most times they respond with the following sarcastic quip: “Oh, yeah, I know. It’s just politics!” And with that bit the conversation always seems to fade, which I’ve come to believe is likely the intention. The reality is that politics is war. And it’s a fight to the death. It’s not “just” anything. To think otherwise is to have a brain the size of a walnut.