I don’t really know when it all started. They say 22 months, but really, it is hard to think back to a time when this election was not underway. To some, it probably started the day after we mistakenly offered George Bush another 4 years to undermine the country. And in a very real sense, the Democrats have been trying to wrest control from Bush ever since he and Katherine Harris and the SCOTUS out weaseled Al Gore and took Florida.
But really, the election started the day Senator Obama tossed his hat into the ring and decided to take on the anointed candidate, Hillary Clinton. Really, they were both great candidates, and the toughness of the primary season may in fact be what prepared Obama so well for the tougher campaign to come. But 22 months? So much has changed. Is it really a job worth having? I wonder if the pursuit of the office is all that is left anymore. The job itself will seem anticlimactic, or worse, impossible. Good luck to whoever gets the keys to the White House.
I wonder if next time around, the election will begin 24 months in advance. Like the Christmas season seems to arrive in retail stores earlier and earlier each year, it makes me wonder why they ever bother to take down the holiday lights anymore. Christmas in July? How about Christmas in April? And so it shall go for the elections. Someday, perhaps, the day after inauguration day will be the day when all the candidates for the next cycle openly declare. A permanent state of electioneering. That would never get old, would it?
With all this time to fill, we have really seen the candidates from every angle. The cable news shows, and the network talking heads, the commentariat, and all those that need to fill air time, or columns in newspapers, must find something to say everyday. I pity them. That is why we analyze a poll that shows a move of 1% even though it has a margin of error of 2.6%. In other words, the movement is trivial, illusory, or even, imaginary. It is like discussing a baseball player raising his batting average from .321 to .323. It is only significant if you talk about it. They follow candidates around the battleground states, where they say EXACTLY THE SAME THING as they said at the last stop, or yesterday, or last week. And yet somehow, it needs to be made news.
Oddly, though, with all the information we have and all the facts, lies and innuendo, there are still so many things I have never heard discussed. They may not seem relevant, but how much of what we have heard has really been relevant to the presidency anyway. Why does it matter whether Obama’s aunt is a legal resident? Should he have turned her in? How can he control who he sits on boards with or who’s at a birthday party he attends, and what does that have to do with anything anyway. All the falderal about Reverend Wright was interesting to me because I wonder if bad stuff was being said in churches I attended from time to time. I must say, I sometimes did not focus on it, often preferring to check out the stained glass, or the structure holding the roof, or the exiting strategy. 6 years of architecture school will do that to you. Would I really want to be held responsible for what was said? No one indicated there would be a quiz. We might have been urged to do something untoward....I don’t really know.
In any event, there are things I’d still like to know. What size shoe does Obama wear? What is McCain’s waistline? Do they drive a manual or automatic...can they even drive a stick shift? What are their pet’s names? When they load their dishwasher, is it on the right or left. Do they ever load the dishwasher? What was their favorite childhood book? Ginger or Maryann? Which was their favorite “Angel”? What kind of beer would we find in their refrigerator? What is their favorite movie? What is in their Netflix queue? What is on their Ipod? Which side of the bed do they sleep on? Curly or Shemp? Scooby Doo or Felix the Cat?
As you can see, despite the time that has passed, there is still a lot we have yet to uncover. Perhaps a few more weeks campaigning and we could really get to the bottom of all this.
But really, the election started the day Senator Obama tossed his hat into the ring and decided to take on the anointed candidate, Hillary Clinton. Really, they were both great candidates, and the toughness of the primary season may in fact be what prepared Obama so well for the tougher campaign to come. But 22 months? So much has changed. Is it really a job worth having? I wonder if the pursuit of the office is all that is left anymore. The job itself will seem anticlimactic, or worse, impossible. Good luck to whoever gets the keys to the White House.
I wonder if next time around, the election will begin 24 months in advance. Like the Christmas season seems to arrive in retail stores earlier and earlier each year, it makes me wonder why they ever bother to take down the holiday lights anymore. Christmas in July? How about Christmas in April? And so it shall go for the elections. Someday, perhaps, the day after inauguration day will be the day when all the candidates for the next cycle openly declare. A permanent state of electioneering. That would never get old, would it?
With all this time to fill, we have really seen the candidates from every angle. The cable news shows, and the network talking heads, the commentariat, and all those that need to fill air time, or columns in newspapers, must find something to say everyday. I pity them. That is why we analyze a poll that shows a move of 1% even though it has a margin of error of 2.6%. In other words, the movement is trivial, illusory, or even, imaginary. It is like discussing a baseball player raising his batting average from .321 to .323. It is only significant if you talk about it. They follow candidates around the battleground states, where they say EXACTLY THE SAME THING as they said at the last stop, or yesterday, or last week. And yet somehow, it needs to be made news.
Oddly, though, with all the information we have and all the facts, lies and innuendo, there are still so many things I have never heard discussed. They may not seem relevant, but how much of what we have heard has really been relevant to the presidency anyway. Why does it matter whether Obama’s aunt is a legal resident? Should he have turned her in? How can he control who he sits on boards with or who’s at a birthday party he attends, and what does that have to do with anything anyway. All the falderal about Reverend Wright was interesting to me because I wonder if bad stuff was being said in churches I attended from time to time. I must say, I sometimes did not focus on it, often preferring to check out the stained glass, or the structure holding the roof, or the exiting strategy. 6 years of architecture school will do that to you. Would I really want to be held responsible for what was said? No one indicated there would be a quiz. We might have been urged to do something untoward....I don’t really know.
In any event, there are things I’d still like to know. What size shoe does Obama wear? What is McCain’s waistline? Do they drive a manual or automatic...can they even drive a stick shift? What are their pet’s names? When they load their dishwasher, is it on the right or left. Do they ever load the dishwasher? What was their favorite childhood book? Ginger or Maryann? Which was their favorite “Angel”? What kind of beer would we find in their refrigerator? What is their favorite movie? What is in their Netflix queue? What is on their Ipod? Which side of the bed do they sleep on? Curly or Shemp? Scooby Doo or Felix the Cat?
As you can see, despite the time that has passed, there is still a lot we have yet to uncover. Perhaps a few more weeks campaigning and we could really get to the bottom of all this.
No comments:
Post a Comment