I listen to a lot of political pundits go on about whoever they're hating on that day. Namely I listen to Limbaugh, Maddow, O'Reilly, Stewart, Hannity, Matthews, Colbert, Maher,...pretty much everyone (except Glenn Beck. I tried. Can't do it.). Sure I agree with some more than others but over and over again I'm reminded of one common trait they share: they have ALL the answers but NONE of them have the courage to run for office. This may sound like some weird endorsement of politicians but at least politicians have the balls to put their name on a ballot and let the public make up their minds. This would explain the recent trend of politicians choosing to become pundits instead of pursuing political office (Palin, Spitzer, Huckabee...). Think of the perks! You can't get voted out of your job, you're encouraged to make outlandish statements, you are put in a king-maker position and you can make a ton more money.
So this all leaves me with a burning question: Would your favorite pundit make a good president?
I've made the Jon Stewart/Lewis Black 2012 joke but I would be too afraid that whatever force turns idealistic politicians into greedy monsters would ruin them too.
ReplyDeleteNext time you do a poll try having a "none of the above" category. Might be interesting.
ReplyDeleteIf i could have voted in your poll, it would have been Bachmann - the most batshit crazy unelectable one of the bunch.
ReplyDeleteWhen she announced that God told her to run, i did a forum post titled "God hates the GOP"
The poll up with my version of a "none of the above"!
ReplyDeleteTak, what you said on this post is actually broader than you think.
ReplyDeletePeople generally hate politicians.
I'm pretty sure that nobody actually sat back and thought about what really takes to change anything. They forget that if they think they can do better, they're welcome to try. And I personally wonder how frustrating it must be for the rare pearls that really try.
Well, I can't really speak for what you think, so I stand corrected. It's broader than what you said :)
ReplyDeletePeople totally hate politicians. Especially right now. And there does seem to be a sequence of perversion that politicians go through as they climb the ladder. It does frustrate me that the ones who start out with the best intentions end up serving party interests. At the same time in an environment where so many are eager to simply tear down the next public figure, whether they're a politician, celebrity, sports figure...it must be hard to keep faith in your constituents/fans.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they have a choice. I imagine that a person who figures he can do some good in politics needs to:
ReplyDelete1. Get elected
2. Be supported by other politicians on his projects
To get elected, he needs to be seen and liked by voters. To be seen, he needs money for the campaign, so there begins the compromises. To be liked, well... maybe people will like his natural self and approve his unpopular proposals. Not very likely, though, so, more compromises.
To be supported, maybe he'll be able to convince some colleagues to vote for his unpopular proposals only with his arguments. But alas, again, not very likely. So plan B becomes support to be supported.
Maybe it's possible to do all that without deviating one inch from perfect ideals. Or maybe some ideals will have to lose priority to allow others to flourish.
Where to draw the line?
Of course, all that only applies to those trying to do some good to society, not those just perpetuating their jobs.