New Hampshire, Iowa, caucuses (caucusi?), primaries.
Are you tired of the 2008 election yet? I am because its been going on since 2006.
On one hand, I am tired out of the constant media attention given to all the candidates. You tube, CNN, Jay Leno, and even all the bloggers. I guess we’re all talking about it. We know all kinds of obscure things about them from their wives’ piercings (Dennis Kucinich) to religious underwear (Mitt Romney) to past flirtation with drugs (Obama). Do any of these things have anything to do with these candidates’ abilities to run the United States of America. Maybe. But, I kind of think not.
But, I wonder if all this fluffy information just diverts the average American from the real news and the real information regarding political processes. Every four years, the big media outlets spend time “educating” all of us about the meaning of a caucus and why Iowans shape the run for the presidency. Why, then, can’t I remember the next time the whole thing rolls around again?
Someone recently sent me an excerpt from a book by Lee Iacocca. It seems that, at the ripe old age of 82, he has decided that he has a lot to say. In the excerpt, he says, and I paraphrase, that our generation needs to put down their iPods for five minutes to be a little more invested in the world around them. As much as I love my iPod, I agree. It just seems like politics as usual goes on around us because we are too busy scheduling “playdates” (have I talked at all about how I dislike that word) for our kids and watching the View. Or perhaps the constant attention paid to Hillary’s pantsuits and haircuts just numbs us all to the real story. Or the constant examination of how the polls look at any given five minute slice of time.
That’s why I find it hard to pay attention, maybe. I would love to find a politician that I can be invested in. As the years go on, politicians seem to evolve further into scripted and polished robots, but at the same time their ability to be trusted diminishes and that’s hard to get excited about. It seems like the moment is always ripe for floundering on the issues or perhaps under the desk in the Oval office.
I like what Lee Iacocca said about our leaders. I hate to point fingers at individuals, but I think that he is 90% right. It takes courage and hard work to negotiate with people with whom you disagree. It takes courage to admit mistakes. Those are the marks of a true leader, and so far from the carefully worded spin that we hear from everyone.
I know that it is supposedly impolite to discuss politics, but I was born inside the city limits of the District of Columbia so I apologize, it never fails to interest me. I really want to know what people think- are you tired of the elections already? Do you care one way or the other? Do you think that we are all immune to something we should care about wholeheartedly?
