Everyone I've talked to is glad it's over...
While we may or may not agree with the results of the recent election, there are a number of good things to consider.
• No more vicious attack ads cluttering up the radio, TV and the Internet
• No more politically biased stories dominating the pages of the Kitsap Democrat
• No more uninformed morons offering what they believe is witty political repartee on the local blogs
• No more of what amounted to little more than political hate mail cluttering up our mailboxes on a daily basis
• No more of the constant, brain-numbing posturing by political candidates
A couple of comments though...
This election was perhaps one of the most stridently polarizing experiences of my lifetime. It seemed as if there was no civility, no common courtesy, and no middle ground where the political parties or the candidates were concerned — absolutely nothing was off-limits, and no personal attack was too sleazy.
The governor's race was especially nasty as blatant, outright lies were told to our faces. Locally, one legislative race was more like a catfight than an election. At the national level, the mainstream media was so blatantly biased towards Barack Obama that it never even bothered to attempt to to portray itself as neutral.
But it's over. Now it's time for us to come back together and begin healing what's wrong with America. And it begins right here at home.
I didn't vote for Barack Obama, but an overwhelming majority of Americans did, in what was truly a historic election. The people have spoken, and that's how our democracy works. Barack Obama is going to be our president, and as an American, I will respect both the man and the office.
He has a tough job ahead of him. And while he doesn't have the worldly experience of John McCain, hopefully he will surround himself with smart people who do, and he'll take their advice. He has promised a lot of things to a lot of people — many of them diametrically opposed and at cross purposes — so it's going to be tough for him to deliver on all of it. But let's give him a fair chance.
Our governor and legislators have huge problems to solve, and Christine Gregoire looked us in the eye during this election and promised us she won't raise our taxes to do it. I intend to hold her feet to the fire editorially on keeping that promise — and no excuses will be acceptable.
But I think the downright mean and negative tone this campaign has burned people out. The Washington State Supreme Court ruled sometime back that it was permissible to lie in a political campaign, because to prohibit it would violate the First Amendment. I understand that logic, and while I don't don't like it, I have to very reluctantly agree that it was the right call.
With that in mind, I'd like to see the legislature enact a "Truth in Campaigning" law, as was suggested by 35th District candidate Randy Neatherlin. After the way this election was conducted, I would think that would be a Tim Eyman intiative that even people who hate him could get behind.
Your thoughts?
While we may or may not agree with the results of the recent election, there are a number of good things to consider.
• No more vicious attack ads cluttering up the radio, TV and the Internet
• No more politically biased stories dominating the pages of the Kitsap Democrat
• No more uninformed morons offering what they believe is witty political repartee on the local blogs
• No more of what amounted to little more than political hate mail cluttering up our mailboxes on a daily basis
• No more of the constant, brain-numbing posturing by political candidates
A couple of comments though...
This election was perhaps one of the most stridently polarizing experiences of my lifetime. It seemed as if there was no civility, no common courtesy, and no middle ground where the political parties or the candidates were concerned — absolutely nothing was off-limits, and no personal attack was too sleazy.
The governor's race was especially nasty as blatant, outright lies were told to our faces. Locally, one legislative race was more like a catfight than an election. At the national level, the mainstream media was so blatantly biased towards Barack Obama that it never even bothered to attempt to to portray itself as neutral.
But it's over. Now it's time for us to come back together and begin healing what's wrong with America. And it begins right here at home.
I didn't vote for Barack Obama, but an overwhelming majority of Americans did, in what was truly a historic election. The people have spoken, and that's how our democracy works. Barack Obama is going to be our president, and as an American, I will respect both the man and the office.
He has a tough job ahead of him. And while he doesn't have the worldly experience of John McCain, hopefully he will surround himself with smart people who do, and he'll take their advice. He has promised a lot of things to a lot of people — many of them diametrically opposed and at cross purposes — so it's going to be tough for him to deliver on all of it. But let's give him a fair chance.
Our governor and legislators have huge problems to solve, and Christine Gregoire looked us in the eye during this election and promised us she won't raise our taxes to do it. I intend to hold her feet to the fire editorially on keeping that promise — and no excuses will be acceptable.
But I think the downright mean and negative tone this campaign has burned people out. The Washington State Supreme Court ruled sometime back that it was permissible to lie in a political campaign, because to prohibit it would violate the First Amendment. I understand that logic, and while I don't don't like it, I have to very reluctantly agree that it was the right call.
With that in mind, I'd like to see the legislature enact a "Truth in Campaigning" law, as was suggested by 35th District candidate Randy Neatherlin. After the way this election was conducted, I would think that would be a Tim Eyman intiative that even people who hate him could get behind.
Your thoughts?
So how do we get something like this started? I can not express enough my enrage towards the media for such prejudice and partiality against McCain/Palin; they didn't even try to balance the tone of information they disseminated. Furthermore, I am profoundly disappointed so many Americans were so susceptible to the trendy talk shows that endorsed him, his "good looks", the pack mentality and such. I did not vote for Obama either but like you I respect him and appreciate his willingness to take public office. It's tragic that many people spend more time shopping for cell phones and watching junk on television than researching and seriously analyzing political candidates.
ReplyDelete