In talking to a co-worker while flipping through the news I mentioned that I was looking for some political info to talk about on my blog ... and they asked me 'why would you want to talk about politics ... it's boring.'
I just sighed and shook my head. If someone in the middle of their life hasn't figured out why people talk about politics I'm not sure I can explain it. I look at the news and I just shake my head ... finding anything about the issues can be a major undertaking ... but want to know the latest on Brittany Spears, Paris Hilton, or the most recent episode of American Idol and you can find it and a littany of other celeberty or sports news.
The latest NBA brawl will likely get more play time than a candidate talking about the issues .... but put a hint of a scandal in it and the news media will be falling all over itself to get the candidates responces to that.
A lot of people, or at least it seems at times that it's a lot, find that politics is just too boring to pay attention to. Frankly the world could fall to pieces around them and as long as they got their weekly dose of 'Survivor: New York Subway' they'd be perfectly content. Most of the time it seems like a bomb could drop on down town Detroit and most people would be more upset about the fact that 'American Idol' was interupted than what happened. (yes I know I'm most likely exagerating there ... or at the least I'd like to think that I am)
And yet ... who wins American Idol will have no bearing on the lives of ... probably 99% of the people out there. (Aside from possibly bet pay offs) while what is going on in their state, and federal government, and in the world as a whole ... in short 'politics' ... will effect pretty much 100% of those lives in some form ... be it taxes, employment, medical care, retirement, education, money .... even potentially what you can see on TV.
And yet, politics is 'boring' ... people actively avoid learning about what's going on because they would rather be entertained than informed. Prefering to base their decisions off of 30 second sound bites or which candidate looks better in their commercial. Never giving a thought to the fact that ... ultimately ... the people that they put into power with their votes .... the laws that they pass on the ballot .... every vote that they cast .... is going to effect them ... and their children.
And we wonder why more and more people are looking to the government for the answers .... oh I don't want to worry about how I'm going to afford retirement I'll just live off my Social Security .... man I need better medical coverage the government should pass a federal health care plan to take care of that ....
In a speech at Vanderbilt University, in May 1963, John F. Kennedy said, "The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all."
Today, just 45 years later, I'd wager it's a good deal more than one voter that walks into the polling place ignorant of the issues and the consequences that will lay before him on the ballot ....
because politics is boring .... the way the politicians like it.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Time and Clouds.
No ... not going to make any excuses ... I haven't put down my thoughts here in ... what ... 8 months or so. Combination of being lazy and just not having anything to say. Haven't even really done all that much to keep me away from my rambling rants ... I did do NaNoWriMo last November and 'won' for a second year. Time just seems to fly away from me lately though ... even at work it feels like I turn around and it's 10pm and time to drive home (not that I'm complaining about that part).
I've been trying to come up with a good rant about politics but geeze there isn't a single good option in the mix ... no mater which party you look at. The result is just a whole lot of 'meh' when it comes to coming up with a rant. Maybe once we get past the primaries and on to the heat of the election I'll be able to rile myself up to finding something with some meat to ramble on about.
Of course it is tax time again ... and that usually brings on my normal 'pass the Fair Tax already' rant ... but while I still put my support into trying to bring awareness and spread the word about the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org .... there's a webinar coming up on March 6th iirc as well) I'm sure my 'regular' readers have heard it before and I just don't have anything new to add to the debate at this point.
Now ... we're working on the fourth paragraph and some of you are probably like 'what in the world does any of this have to do with clouds?' .... Nothing really ... and everything.
Basically it boils down like this ... I was getting out of my car the other night and happened to look up into the sky to see what stars I could find and ... there was a cloud that looked, to me at least, to be a big dog jumping up after a ball. And I thought to myself you know ... I never look at clouds any more.
Of course this comes at the tail end of a lot of 'I never do...' lines so I suppose it's not that odd really. But the fact is that it's true ... I don't read any more ... I don't paint or draw like I used to all the time ... except for NaNo I rarely write even to blog ... I haven't picked up a camera in a long time and the last time I used a camera wasn't for 'creative' photography. And a dozen or so other things that I used to do all the time ... and that I still enjoy doing but somehow never seem to actually do anymore.
I thought it was just me .... or maybe just me and the wife ... but two co-workers have recently made the same comment to me lately, and a client at the office said 'you know I haven't picked up my guitar in years, I used to play every night' when we were talking about hobbies.
I don't know ... maybe I'm reading too much into it ... and really it is just me.
Anyway ... enough of that ... it's getting depressing and that's not what I came here to write about ... well okay some of it was ... but just as clouds seem to change shapes and become something else so do my rants on occasion. And there you have a nice cloud of thought ... doesn't mean much ... it's kind of murky and ill defined ... neither a heavy grey storm cloud nor a high wispy summer cloud .... just a shifting image of a dog leaping up to catch a ball ....
I've been trying to come up with a good rant about politics but geeze there isn't a single good option in the mix ... no mater which party you look at. The result is just a whole lot of 'meh' when it comes to coming up with a rant. Maybe once we get past the primaries and on to the heat of the election I'll be able to rile myself up to finding something with some meat to ramble on about.
Of course it is tax time again ... and that usually brings on my normal 'pass the Fair Tax already' rant ... but while I still put my support into trying to bring awareness and spread the word about the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org .... there's a webinar coming up on March 6th iirc as well) I'm sure my 'regular' readers have heard it before and I just don't have anything new to add to the debate at this point.
Now ... we're working on the fourth paragraph and some of you are probably like 'what in the world does any of this have to do with clouds?' .... Nothing really ... and everything.
Basically it boils down like this ... I was getting out of my car the other night and happened to look up into the sky to see what stars I could find and ... there was a cloud that looked, to me at least, to be a big dog jumping up after a ball. And I thought to myself you know ... I never look at clouds any more.
Of course this comes at the tail end of a lot of 'I never do...' lines so I suppose it's not that odd really. But the fact is that it's true ... I don't read any more ... I don't paint or draw like I used to all the time ... except for NaNo I rarely write even to blog ... I haven't picked up a camera in a long time and the last time I used a camera wasn't for 'creative' photography. And a dozen or so other things that I used to do all the time ... and that I still enjoy doing but somehow never seem to actually do anymore.
I thought it was just me .... or maybe just me and the wife ... but two co-workers have recently made the same comment to me lately, and a client at the office said 'you know I haven't picked up my guitar in years, I used to play every night' when we were talking about hobbies.
I don't know ... maybe I'm reading too much into it ... and really it is just me.
Anyway ... enough of that ... it's getting depressing and that's not what I came here to write about ... well okay some of it was ... but just as clouds seem to change shapes and become something else so do my rants on occasion. And there you have a nice cloud of thought ... doesn't mean much ... it's kind of murky and ill defined ... neither a heavy grey storm cloud nor a high wispy summer cloud .... just a shifting image of a dog leaping up to catch a ball ....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
