What does this mean? I'm proposing that 80% of American voters are disconnected from political issues and their real implications/impacts to our society. Don't get me wrong...I'm not telling you that I understand every political issue, because I certainly don't. I'm just making some over-arching observations.
Aren't political races just adult 'popularity' contests?! If you're a charismatic leader, articulate conversationalist, and you appeal to the masses, you will get people to follow you. Then, as you gather followers, pressure builds for others to follow suit. Conformity becomes a driving force. Issues and implications on issues don't mean squat at this point. It's all about what others are doing and saying.
A real-world business example:
- A business has an open position they are interviewing for
- 3 employees interview the same candidate in different rooms
- When the 3 interviewers are done interviewing the candidate, they have informal side conversations indicating what they thought of the candidate
At this point, all integrity of the interview process is lost. The second that someone starts to impress opinions upon others, those others will be influenced. This is where human nature takes over: humans want to feel accepted and tend to follow others.
I am definitely not someone with an affiliation to any particular party. I am a a scientist or realist at heart. I consume data and make decisions from it, while trying to avoid too many influential outside factors. I boil issues down to very basic fundamental aspects.
In looking at the current fiscal and social issues that most people focus on (i.e. energy costs, financial crisis, abortion, social security, health care, etc.) I would tend to think that most people don't know how to articulate the mechanics behind each of these issues.
Take Social Security for example. It's pretty cut and dry related to the two positions: Republicans support privatization of social security funds, Democrats don't. So, just because someone affiliates with one party, do they really know the mechanics and implications of social security privitzation? Highly doubtful. That would require the voter to be an Economist, Psychiatrist, CEO, etc....all wrapped up into one.
The issues that face society today are complicated...very complicated. It's nearly impossible to expect anyone to know them inside and out. So, it amazes me that our political parties don't choose candidates based on charisma and popularity, more than resume.
I'm confident that the Democrats nailed it on the head this election with their nomination of Barrack Obama. The Republicans completely missed the target with their nomination of John McCain. Obama is the guy that most people can associate with and he will win the "popularity" contest. McCain has way too many strikes against him from a leader and affiliation standpoint. At a very fundamental level, he misses the mark on being a leader and appealing to large masses of people.
Republicans 8 years from now will look back on 2008 as a year of lost opportunity. A year in which they could have nominated a candidate that would have had a chance against a charismatic leader like Barrack Obama. They had candidates at their disposal to do so...instead, they nominated John McCain.
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