We recently went through the last of the presidential debates, and now are just a couple of weeks away from election day. All I can say is THANK GOODNESS! At no point in my life have I been as involved in politics as I have been this year, which is strange because I don’t even live in the country anymore, but for some reason, I just felt like I had to get involved, enough so that I finally registered to vote this year, despite having believed (and honestly I still do) that it’s utterly pointless.
Whomever you ultimately decide to vote for, I’m sure that you are sick to death of all the negative ads, the constant coverage, and the doomsday rhetoric that seems to be coming from both sides if the other side is elected. Not to mention the annoyance that there are only two sides! There hasn’t been a legitimate third party contender since Ross Perot (you can maybe include Ralph Nader, but seriously… no).
If you actually listened to the venom being spewed by either side, you would instantly believe that as soon as the other side’s candidate steps into office as the next elected president, Armageddon will happen, the US will completely implode, and life as we know it will end in a fiery explosion. In truth, unless the US were to be actually taken over by a fascist regime, they are likely to run it at least moderately competently, and within two years, if you didn’t like it, you could always swap over to another set of politicians who will pander to their constituents. The president as an individual only has so much power, which is actually the beauty of the American governmental system. No single branch of government can have that large an effect without another one getting in its way.
But aside from how the government actually works, the election is lame for another reason. Out of the 50 states that can vote, in any given election, only 8 ever really matter. Unless you happen to live in one of those 8 states, your state will vote for either the Democrat or the Republican, and by such a wide margin, any individual vote won’t matter. So 42 states out of 50 are pretty much ignored during the entire campaign process, their concerns falling by the wayside. Party politics have congealed in such a way that they are diametrically opposed, so unless there is a literal 180 by one party or the other, these 42 states will continue to vote as they always have. The remaining 8 states are inundated with so many campaign ads, I’m surprised there haven’t been any campaign related riots. People just sick to death of hearing “This message approved by so-and-so candidate” and deciding to take to the streets, burning candidates in effigy.
Every 4 years, we are forced to sit through political campaigns that pander to the lowest common denominator, because that’s how they get votes. You can’t have high minded ideas, because then you’ll be labeled an elitist, and will be hammered by the media, who are trying to push their own agenda. Also, don’t ask anyone to sacrifice, because the country in general wants to have everything and give up nothing. The stereotype that Americans feel entitled to things seem to bear out if you were to base it on the campaigns the candidates run. Everyone wants something, but ask them to give something else up, and there’s an uproar saying the person who said that is “un-American.” People seem to forget that the US is a nation of immigrants, and first generation immigrants had to sacrifice just to get there. They didn’t kill themselves so their kids could whine about having to give up their toys. They did it to give them a chance at a better opportunity for a better life. What you do with that opportunity is up to you. So far, it’s beginning to look like a wasted opportunity.
I’m rambling, but trying to keep up with everything that’s being said by the campaigns and trying to keep the facts straight has taken a toll on my mind. They throw a ton of information, much of it either outside of our realm of understanding, or such a blatant lie, that you have to research like mad in order to make sense of any of it. I have the time to do much of that now because I’m a stay at home dad, but your average working individual will be way too busy to do that, and will just trust whatever media they choose to view, which is why Fox News is so popular. It could be utter bull, but who has the time to fact check? As important as it is to the US to have an informed electorate, the media in general, and the parties in particular are doing everything they can to muddy the picture to make their guy seem better.
The feeling that I can’t seem to shake is that no matter who the president is going to be, how big of an effect will it ultimately have on my life? I’ve lived through Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush II, and Obama, and honestly, it hasn’t been much different from one to the next. Maybe it’s just the way I live (within my means, not relying on credit, and working to earn my money) but prices always fluctuate, the bills always seem to be too high, there never seems to be enough money, and ultimately, you do everything you can to take care of yourself and your family. Granted, I’ve been fortunate in that we haven’t had any major medical emergencies in the family, or any investments that are subject to the whims of the market, but I think the majority of the country lives like that. We all struggle in our lives, but most of us find a way. Has it ever changed drastically from one president to the next?
In closing, do I think this election is important? Yes, but maybe not for the same reasons that a lot of others think so. I believe that Obama is the best chance for a proper recovery of the two candidates, but I don’t think he’s the best person for the job. He’s just the better of the two candidates, because Romney has shown himself to have no backbone, and will do whatever is most popular at the moment, and unfortunately, populist rule will only lead to a clusterfuck of epic proportions. A proper leader is someone who has a vision, has strong and supportable reasons for the actions he wants to take towards that vision, tries his or her best to convince people to work with them towards that vision, but will find ways to do what they have to do in order to see their vision through. Obama has been too soft in that regard, as he let the Republicans block him at every turn, instead of bulling his way through at points, but I’m convinced that if Romney gets into office, he will basically be a puppet for the more extreme elements of his party. Of course, the fact that politicians are a part of this process at all is the problem. A really great leader is someone who doesn’t seek out leadership, they are people who are put in that position by others because they are seen to have the qualities that people want to lead them. Unfortunately, there’s no way to have that happen on such a large scale.
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