I wrote this October 2008. Not much has changed four years later.
We need more level-headedness this political season. Spin, half-truths, omissions, character assassinations, and a general mischaracterization of positions has contributed to a viciously divided, uninformed populace. It’s sickening. Not too long ago, both John McCain and Barack Obama promised positive campaigns that would not stoop to the negative aforementioned tactics. What has transpired, however, is far from that.
In the world of the left, they would have you believe that McCain is a near-dead, senile, erratic, evil fascist warmonger that would reinstitute the draft and coddle the super-rich, leaving the majority of Americans homeless and helpless. On the right, Obama is portrayed as a radical, liberal communist with a secret Islamic-extremist, terrorist agenda, who will kill babies and steal every penny from the wealthy. It’s ludicrous.
I cherish, absolutely cherish when I hear openly biased pundits cede points to the opposition, and heaven forbid, even admit victory points for the opposing team. That’s real political discourse. It gets lost with these political blowhards that spew hyper-partisan garbage and never admit that sometimes their side messed up or was wrong. These pundits would have you believe their opposition is responsible for every trespass against humanity in the history of humankind. Starting an argument by claiming that the other side is so incompetent, stupid, and irrational that you can’t even reason with those people is unproductive and pointless. News flash: there are smart, capable and intelligent people on both sides of the political spectrum.
The central problem with this partisan hackery is that it fosters an environment of shear hate for the other side. Obama supporters seem to genuinely despise McCain as if he is the second coming of Hitler. And McCain supporters really seem to hate — really hate — Obama as if he is bin Laden’s sidekick. This hatred is sad. The truth is, both men have strengths and weaknesses, both men are highly skilled and successful, and both men truly believe they can lead America to better times — if not, they would not be where they are. I really am confident that both men honestly believe they can effectively lead the country. Let’s cut the bogus distractions, questioning of one’s motives, and move to a level-headed, nuanced discussion about which policies are best for America at these precarious times.