Posted by: tensoriana on: November 1, 2008
One billion dollars spent in political propaganda is one billion dollars spent. As an American living in Europe and with three nationalities to confuse the issue, I am stunned by the lack of substance in american political discourse. Ignorance is clearly in surplus among the voters and it is with that ignorance that many politicians play with. If they do not tackle ignorance, then they go for emotions. From Joe the Plumber to Palin, I would rather see him than her as McCain’s running mate. A few days ahead of the vote and while the polls clearly show Obama ahead, at this point I do not know what that might mean on the voting booths on “the day.”
The so-called plot to assassinate Obama may or may not have really happened, and America, south of the Canadian border and north of Mexico, may or may not be ready to accept a president of African ethnic origin. I am not in the heart of all Americans, I can not know that. I find it totally contemptuous that a character named Palin has been nominated as vice president candidate. It is tantamount to a slap in the face to any intellectual or hard working woman to have somebody so poorly educated and with such limited capabilities and no proven track record just a heart beat away from the presidency. You see, I am not so sure that Obama will either live to be sworn in, or that he will be elected in the first place. I do not know much about Obama, and if appearances and public words are of any advice, then he is clearly the holder of lot of hopes for America, if not the world. What kind of president would he be? That we do not know.
From an economic point of view I welcome the spending, but from an educational and democratic point of view, it is a catastrophe because not much of substance is being transmitted to the voters, just propaganda. From that point of view, a limitation on spending might be wise, but then, I am a liberal and limitations of spending do not fare well with us either. In this campaign the best thing that has happened to Obama is the financial crisis and Palin’s poor judgement on how to dress and who’s money to spend. By the way, I think she looks good in Manolo Blanik shoes, but so would Joe the Plumber’s wife.
Dannie Jost
Philosopher, Physicist and Swiss (at least today)
