At the tender age of seventeen, in 367 BCE, Aristotle went to study at Plato’s Academy in the sprawling metropolis of ancient Athens. Over the next 20 years, a debate would ensue that came to dominate the direction of the Western world for the next 2,400 years. Despite the millions of hours of discussion and argument amongst the greatest minds in history, after nearly two and a half millennia of disagreement under our belt, we are no closer to resolving these two clashing theories today than in the 4th century BCE.

Fortunately for all of us, in many areas that are essential to modern prosperity, we have found a way to circumvent this theoretical stalemate and focus our efforts more productively on reality.  In the 17th century, a few exceptional minds came up with a novel idea:  why don’t we stop arguing about these lofty theories which attempt to explain the world and develop a way to systematically discover how the world actually works.   And thus, the mindset and method of innovation were born.

Innovation is not rocket science, but it is how we use science to make rockets.

In the last 400 years, as we have pushed aside the purely theoretical discourse in favor of a reality-based approach, we have transformed every aspect of our daily lives and every facet of the Modern world.   In fact, every field to which we have applied innovative problem solving and the scientific method, we have experienced exponential advancement, but in areas where we have continued the theoretical food fight, we are still experiencing fruitless floundering.

Unfortunately, there is one area in which we have conspicuously continued to ignore the transformational power of innovation, and that is our political process.  “Innovation is radically transforming all aspects of human activity; except the way we govern ourselves.” according to Dr. Moises Naim, a distinguished fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and bestselling author.  The continuation of the 24-century dispute between the theories of left versus right has resulted in a state of perpetual pugilism that has no end in sight.  Both sides seem to have adopted the leadership principle attributed to Genghis Khan, “It is not sufficient that I succeed – all others must fail.“

Theory vs. reality

This disconnection between the theoretical approach and the reality-based approach of innovation would not be as unforgivable if the evidence were not so overwhelming.   Each and every field to which innovation has been applied from science, technology, and medicine to agriculture and industry, has experienced miraculous advancement.  This progress is not a by-product of chance or random events; it is a result of a dynamic and intense focus on systematically solving every problem that arose in those fields.   Reality-based problem solving is how we established the firm foundation of Modern prosperity and why humanity has been empowered to reach such lofty heights.  In the last two centuries alone, we have gone from leaches and feathers to gene therapy and smartphones and from horseback to landing on the moon.

Solutions not Illusions

Until now, we have been missing a mechanism to apply the world-changing process of innovation to our politics.  The American Innovation Party and movement is the toolkit that will empower us to accomplish these goals.  In the first step, we must bridge the divide between the two warring, irreconcilable theories of left and right by shifting our political culture to focus on solutions, not dogmatic, ideological, and partisan disputation.  Only by doing this can we then engage the second step of putting our considerable, unparalleled energies into innovatively and effectively solving each and every problem confronting our nation.

I have often wondered how Germany in the 1920s and ’30s, one of the most advanced, well-educated countries in the world at that time, steeped in the traditions of logic, math, and science, could have succumbed to the Nazi spell.  Also, how during the mid-20th century, when we unlocked the mysteries of the atom and our genetic code, fully one-third of the population of the world lived in totalitarian Marxist-Communist regimes. Then I consider the radical dogmas and severe tribalism of both sides of the current American political process, and it seems far less unimaginable.  The more significant point is that all of us are susceptible to outlandish beliefs and the more we allow ourselves to be attracted to lofty theories promising fantastic utopias of bygone eras, the more likely we are to embrace unrealistic choices.

Eyes wide open is essential for clarity of thought and purpose

We must confront this tendency of human nature head-on with clear heads and open eyes.  The way we have done this in so many areas of Modern society is by embracing a mentality and methodology of seeking solutions over untested, unproven theoretical assertions. The two most vital questions we should use to examine any political claim are:  how does it work and where has it, or something similar, succeeded in the past.  Anyone who cannot answer these basic questions does not deserve further consideration.

The reason that innovation has been so enormously successful is that it cuts through baseless theoretical claims like a hot knife through soft butter.  It forces us all to focus on facts, evidence, and systematically determining what works versus what does not.  In other words, it elevates reality over theory and exposes utopian thinking for the child-like indulgent fantasy that it is.

In the book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, visitors to the Emerald City are required to wear green-tinted glasses, which gives the city the illusion of an emerald glow.  Once the glasses are removed, Dorthey and her companions see the city how it actually was, warts and all.   Innovation will perform the same function for our political process so that we can see problems as they really are and systematically solve each and every one of them.