Sunday, October 24, 2010

Let It Be Over

I can't wait for the election season to be over.  I feel alienated watching ads designed to get to me where I don't see anything wrong.

Often, they're merely irrelevant, discussing issues that don't mean much to me.  That I can understand--there are issues voters out there, gotta reach them.

But then there are personal attacks that seem entirely pointless.  Are you really trying to convince me this guy who's served in office for years is too nutty?  Or this gal who made millions out in the real world is too rich?

Worst of all are specific attacks that have the opposite effect intended.  For example, more than once I've seen a politician accused of saying it's not the business of Congress to create jobs.  Damn straight it isn't.  They should be creating a situation where the free market can create jobs. Can anyone take this attack seriously?  Does anyone hear some sound bite (usually taken out of context) and say "hey, this candidate doesn't care if we're unemployed"?  That seems to be the hope of the people making the ad.

Another example regards the health care bill.  I've got plenty of problems with it, but the attack is usually that it'll cut Medicare.  That may sound unpleasant, but no matter what our health plan, Medicare is breaking us and it'll probably have to be cut one way or another.  If that's what the health care bill does, then it may be moving us in the right direction.

4 Comments:

Anonymous Reggie said...

Haven't you heard?

"It takes time."

7:40 AM, October 24, 2010  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

As the electorate evolves and is exposed to more media, I remain hopeful that the most obnoxious ads will lose their punch. My son's Middle School social studies class reports the finding that when these guys hear the typical snearing voice they tune out. (of course then they had an assignment to interview republicans and democrats to compare and contrast views- we had to search long and hard to find folks that still identified with party labels)

I don't expect negative ads to disappear (and don't want them too- they are useful or effective and occasionally both), I just hope they get less stupid. NEG

5:09 AM, October 25, 2010  
Blogger QueensGuy said...

NEGuy, I am having the same experience with my middle school daughter. She utterly tunes out as soon as she sees the "scary darkening" effect or hears that sneering tone. My guess is it's related to their experience with online message boards -- they recognize trolling when they see it.

12:00 PM, October 25, 2010  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Will you do us a favor, QG? On election day ask her who she is voting for, and do your best to get her reasons why, and then give us your best sense of why. This is the rub. We can despise something, and yet either it still influences us, or it causes us to shift to something else equally invalid, but for which we do not bother to reserve our skepticism.

CG, etc.

5:06 AM, October 26, 2010  

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