Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

This blog headline lists one of most interesting words I have heard in my life – spelunking.

I heard it for the first time many years ago and just read it again the other day.

What does it mean?

“The exploration of caves, especially as a hobby.”

In some ways, that’s not enough of a definition.  For, when I first came into contact with the word, I saw a TV show illustrating spelunking.  It was when individuals decided to go underground between rocks where they could squeeze in to explore a cave.

Not me.

So, to herald this good word, I open the Department of Words Matter, one of five I run with a free hand to manage as I see fit.  The others are the Department of Pet Peeves, the Department of Good Quotes Worth Remembering, the Department of Inquiring Minds Want to Know, and the Department of “Just Saying.”

This time, the word “spelunking” arose in a column reporting a discussion among four analysts about politics in America.  It was led by New York Times columnist Frank Bruni, one of the best writers going in America – and it appeared in the Times.

Here is one quote from Bruni:

“Donald Trump will be inaugurated and Republicans will control both chambers of Congress.  Happy Holidays!  Judged by the sheer volume of words that have been written and spoken since November 5 about their party’s comeuppance, Democrats have gone beyond soul searching to soul spelunking — they’ve descended into whole new subterranean caverns of analysis.”

Good point, not to mention a good word.

Another good word arose in the discussion Bruni led.  This:  Echo-Chamber.

Here was the quote:

“The sign outside HQ now should say ‘Beware:  Entering an Echo Chamber.’  I said move to Youngstown, but it could be Pittsburgh or Cleveland or Toledo or Detroit or Milwaukee.  But I am dead serious that it should not be in Washington or anywhere on the coasts.  We need to send a bold signal that we are committed to reconnecting to people out in the real world.”

This quote came from Tim Ryan, the former U.S. House Speaker who was too good to last in the job he did not have for long.

He faulted Democrats for being in an “echo-chamber,” which means “an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative ideas are not considered.”

Another good point – and a good word.

To reclaim their heritage – a party that cares about someone other than themselves – Democrats need to get out of their echo-chamber and listen to what real people are saying in the U.S., far from Washington, D.C. 

Then, I say there are two ways to achieve ends:

• First, listen to what real people have to say.  One of my former business partners put it very well when he said, “God gave you two ears and one mouth – so listen twice as much as you talk.”  Politicians, of course, tend to talk rather than listen.l

• Second, design ways to respond that make connections with real people – real people who display their citizenship by voting.

So, don’t spelunk and get out of your echo-chamber.