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Quote by: Osborn F Enready Sean said:
I respect your idealism (this word takes on too many negative connotations lately), but I guess I do not see your proposal as being a rational option. People like divisiveness, polarization, and demagogic politics. Something like ninety-percent of the populace knew exactly who they were voting for in 2004, even before the primaries, simply based on party id.
I say:
While I don't disagree that the current group of voters, of all ages, knew who they were voting for and also that they partake, and enjoy in some cases demagogic politics, I disagree that this is of their own doing. Most of it is learned reponses from "our" experiences in our life. All people alive today, limited by age, have no concept of revolution since none have existed in this nation since the civil war. Those who lived before us, much more clearly understood the threat of tyranny, the encroachment of power on liberty, and the true importance of being as free as possible to live life as you see fit. They more clearly saw the threat of authoritarianism, and its many veils of disguise. Reading about war, is nothing like being in a war, in the battle. Ask any person who has ever served in a war, and they will 90 to 1 agree. The same is true of education and understanding of the world we live in, and the governments we live under.
You have to remember that the media age has occurred within a lifespan, and we are seeing all the ill effects of misuse of that media compacted into a short period of time thanks to technology. The removal of liberty could have never happened this fast in an age of media limited to the written word, and that is THE most critical point of my statement. |
I haven't had a chance to get to read this thread for a bit, so please forgive me if I'm covering old ground.
I believe it IS of their own doing, and it has little to do with politics. One, we like a winner so many of us support who we think will win and it is rarely for the good of the country. I've heard the old "why not vote Libertarian" argument too many times to see it any other way. When given the choice of what political approach we should use to run the country a LOT of people agree with the Libertarian ideology (usually when the actual party name isn't given). However, when asked as to who they vote for they pick D or R and the reason all too often is the classic Catch-22, "I'll vote for them when they start winning some elections."
And two, we just like to take sides, mainly because it offers the competitor in us the opportunity to go "nyaa nyaa" at the loser.
In other words, as a society we have a compulsion to pick a side because we like to pick the winning side, and WE like to win. The non-partisan approach IS the best way to go, but it is also the way that will never catch on with our "We're number ONE" society. For proof of that point, just look at the steadily increasing negativity of the ads in the last few elections. We hate to lose, period.