Election Special - November, 2008

Thank God it is over. No more “Linda Stender is a spender” TV spots. No more signs littering the road (This morning I found it hard to pull out of the polling place because the proliferation of political signs was blocking my view of the road.). No more political flyers that found their way immediately into the recycling bag. No more pundits and no more reviews of Sarah Palin’s clothing allowance or choice of eyewear. No more pre-recorded calls from candidates. No more people stopping at the house to promote their choice for office. No more “debates” that turned out to be little more than a recitation of stump speeches with little or no regard for the questions posed by moderators.

There has to be a better way. Half the stuff I experienced never told me about the candidate running, just about what was wrong with the opposition. Half the “political consultants” promote their candidate and the other half the opposition but without telling me anything other than we need a change. Really?

So it is over, and someone new will be in charge of the White House. Someone new will be my Congressional representative (the incumbent chose not to run in my district). We might have new freeholders and a new mayor in my town, and the old Senator, might be reelected or might be passed over for a 60-something year old who is 20 years younger.

I am writing this prior to the results, which will dominate the TV tonight (except in my house, where I will be watching old movies and checking the news periodically to learn who won). So this is not about who wins or loses, who is qualified or unqualified and what kind of leader he or she will be. It is strictly an indictment of the political process, its negativity, its cost and its waste of time, money and resources. I was interested this time around in the positions of the candidates, all of which were so poorly articulated that they were drowned out by their own rhetoric. Don’t you, the candidate, want me – the voter, and one with an open mind, no less – to know your views, your record and your choices so I can make a good one? Or do you prefer hyperbole about the opposition that fails to educate me about why I should vote for you?

In the end, I made up my own mind, and while I’m not certain I made all the right choices, I did exercise my right to vote. But I’m not sure that given the process and the current state of the union, that anyone comes out a winner this year.

But at least they will stop calling the house now, and that’s a win for me.