Well, it’s a hundred days and counting – I’ve got 100 days to figure out who I’m going to vote \u2014 against. I’ve been a registered voter for over 50 years and I’ve voted in every presidential election over those 50 years. I’m trying to think how long it’s been since I voted “for” someone instead of “against” someone.<\/p>\n
I’m often accused of being old and crotchety – and I probably am, but it seems that every presidential race is becoming more and more negative. I don’t remember a TV ad this year that one candidate wasn’t knocking the other. No one tells you how good they’re going to be for the country – just how bad their opponent will be.<\/p>\n
I read an article a day or so ago that indicated that the presidential election is sinking to record depths of negativity and nastiness. The fact is that it does all seem negative, but I wouldn’t call it “nasty” just yet.<\/p>\n
If you look back in history, politics has always been a bit nasty. The 1800 race between Thomas Jefferson and John Adams is a good example. (No, I wasn’t old enough to vote for or against anyone in that election.) A Jefferson hired hand wrote that Adams was a “hideous hermaphroditical character which has neither the force and firmness of a man, nor the gentleness and sensitivity of a woman.” Adams’ campaign countered that Jefferson was “a mean-spirited, low-lived fellow, the son of a half-breed Indian squaw, sired by a Virginia mulatto father.” I hate to say it, but if the current campaign gets to that point, it might at least become more entertaining.<\/p>\n
In one recent poll (at least according to the Washington Post) more than two-thirds of voters said they already had all the information they need to make their choice. Apparently a lot of people can make up their minds with a lot less information or “facts” than I can. I’ll stand by hoping something happens in the next 100 days that makes me want to vote “for” someone.<\/p>\n
The fact is, one of these guys (Obama or Romney) will be elected president and will immediately have to deal with a fiscal crisis that will test his political and leadership skills. Whoever I decide to vote against, I wish his opponent the best of luck\u2026
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Well, it’s a hundred days and counting – I’ve got 100 days to figure out who I’m going to vote \u2014 against. I’ve been a registered voter for over 50 years and I’ve voted in every presidential election over those … Continue reading