Issue 3: The Point of all these Issues

“Just how stupid are we?” That’s the title of a new book that talks about the failures of our democracy--because we as voters make ill-informed decisions. The book apparently (my David McCullough book on Harry Truman is so thick I haven’t been able to finish it in time to read this one) points out the fact that polls have consistently shown that, for the past seven years, the majority of Americans believe that Saddam Hussein was involved in the 9/11 attacks, was involved with Al Qaeda and was an international terrorist. It also points out the fact that the truth about Saddam--brutal thug? yes, international terrorist? no--was easily available to any American who wished to know the facts (the 9/11 commission said definitively in early 2004 that Saddam had nothing to do with Al Qaeda). Even still, the presidential election was held later in the fall of 2004 with roughly half the country still mistaken about these important facts--and we re-elected George Bush.

My purpose in starting this blog was to do my part in ensuring that such misinformed voting doesn’t happen again. Am I saying that we’re stupid? Not at all. Am I saying that we tend to make important decisions based on sound bites, talk radio and chain emails? Maybe. 

The trend of decision-making we saw in 2004 appears to be continuing today--on both sides. Many people who side with Obama are operating under the impression that John McCain wants the Iraq War to last 100 years when that’s not what he said at all. On the flip side, many people who side with John McCain believe that Barack Obama wants to raise taxes for middle class families--also not true. Or even worse, some people probably still believe that Obama’s a Muslim--we’re not even going to go there.

As I said in the introductory post (see The Introduction), I don’t blame us for not wanting to sift through the political muck to find the facts. But I do blame us for refusing to use the facts that are made available to us in making decisions that matter as much as this one.

And . . . scene. Be a dear, help me off this soap box, would ya? 

So what’s the point? This blog has so far been largely focused on the issues, and (I believe) rightly so. But the point of all these issues is to eventually make a decision. I think it’s worthwhile for us to talk about the decisions we intend to make and the reasons we’re making them. Here’s what I’m proposing.

Anyone who wishes, can post to this blog by completing the following, “I’m voting for [YOUR CANDIDATE OF CHOICE] because...” 

Let’s get it all out on the table. We can hear what each other has to say in a safe environment and, perhaps, together we can all do our part to ensure that this election season we’re making our decisions for the right reasons and for the good of our country. Does this mean that we should all agree? No. What’s the fun in that? Does it even mean that, were we to all make “informed” decisions in November, that we’d all vote for the same candidate? I don’t think so. It simply means that we’ll have a chance to voice our opinions and hear what others have to say about it. Call it a scientific/social experiment to test the validity of our thinking. 

If you’re having a hard time articulating your completion of that sentence, well maybe now is the time to think about it. If you don’t want to voice your opinion, that’s fine, rest assured the “issue posts” will keep coming and you can feel free to read and digest them safe in the comfort of anonymity. But if you would like to voice your opinion, I’ve come up with a few ground rules to put your mind (and your neck) at ease:

POSTING

1. There are no rules (except for no cussing or name-calling of  course). It's your sentence, so finish it however you want.

2. A background in writing, literature or (heaven forbid) political science is not a pre-requisite. This is government (and blogging) for the people and by the people--that includes everyone.

3. If you want to post, just send me an email and I’ll add you as an author to the blog.

COMMENTING

1. Be nice.

2. Be objective. If you disagree with someone, do so in a fair and objective manner. Our political persuasions can become a very personal and emotional thing; however, now is not the time for emotion but for expression of our opinions without fear of reproach.

3. No commenting on people’s writing ability or grammatical proficiency.

4. I reserve the write to remove comments that don’t follow the rules.

Now, while it would be sweet if this blog were to solve all our country’s and democracy’s problems, I’m more realistic than that. But still, we can at least try to do our part, not to mention the fact that my curiosity is killing me--and I think it’ll be fun.

Tell you what, I’ll get things started. Look forward to my next post, “I’m voting for [HOLD YOUR HORSES] because...”