I have played intramural sports the entire time I have been on campus. From indoor flag football to basketball and co-rec softball, intramurals have been a great way to hang out with friends and stay competitive. 

Last weekend was the first time I had played intramural basketball. Besides getting my first technical foul, it was an entirely different dynamic for me. 

I had never played organized football, and co-rec softball had a recreational and relaxed vibe to it, the sort of league that could have occurred in a big backyard during a summer picnic. 

The difference for intramural basketball was it was competitive, and I knew how to play. I was never a great basketball player, but I played eight years of organized, competitive basketball. I was looked to as someone who knew how to play. My voice carried weight, but I was far from “in charge.” 

I learned in a political science class that everything is politics, and nowhere is that more true than in intramural sports. The handful of people on a single team come together for a common purpose, be it winning, goofing off, staying in shape or just for something to do. They come together as equals, as people all equally validated in participating. 

Yet, for my team at least, we come together inherently unequal. Some have played at a high level of varsity basketball, while some have never touched a basketball before. Naturally, a leader will emerge, and he has to lead a team that has never played together before cohesively towards their goal, whatever it may be. 

He has to lead his equals, something far more difficult than a coach leading a middle school team. His age and position naturally give him authority, something the leader of an intramural team lacks. 

Politics can be viewed through this lens. 

A politician must understand what needs to be done, the end goals and desires of his constituents who put him in power, while leading a divided group towards a single destination. Balancing these things was difficult with a nine-guy basketball team. Imagining the complexity of balancing the same issues for thousands of people is daunting.

The participatory aspect is critical for understanding how politics must function. Without the idea of equality, of each voice being valid, one person can easily take control of the team, or the country, leading it away from its original intent and purpose. Very few people are willing to let their roommate order them around on the basketball court, but people allow it to happen in government with frightening regularity. Without input from everyone, it is easy at any level to trample over someone’s thoughts, ideas, and rights.

So when you look to Washington with scorn for Congress or the President, think of two things. First, think of the complexity and the difficulty of their task. Secondly, and more importantly, think of what you have given to guide them. Without an active voice in public affairs, there is no way to ensure your desires are met. Just as a ball-hog will shoot if not told otherwise, a politician will only listen to the people who speak the loudest. So keep playing intramurals, and remember every voice should be heard, whether on the court or in the Capitol.