They say that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. So why is it the American people allow our politicians to do the same things over and over and we believe them and expect results different from previous elections ?
I’ve looked at the websites of current and previous candidates to get an understanding of their platforms. They all have positions, some of which I agree with , some of which I don’t. But there is one thing that is missing from each and everyone of them, any manner of implementation. Health care, spending cuts, retaining or repealing tax cuts, keeping or removing troops, the soundbites with pretty numbers never end. Not a single candidate provides details on how exactly they are going to accomplish anything. Don’t they realize that economists exists to make lottery ticket buyers look smart, not presidential candidates ?
It reminds me of business plans I get from kids who tell me about their vision and project all kinds of numbers leading to grand results. They can site historical facts and figures, but when it comes time to get into details of exactly how they are going to execute on their plans, the response is basically that they will figure it out as they go. I wouldn’t invest in a business that is winging it any more than I want to vote for a presidential candidate that is winging it.
Unfortunately , they are all winging it. i have no question that they have every detail about how to spend their campaign contributions on advertising planned out. I have yet to see details on how they plan to accomplish all their great promises they are making to voters. That scares me.
It also scares me that despite claims of not being an “insider” or wanting a different vision for America, every remaining candidate spends more energy campaigning to their party than to the issues. I got sick watching Clinton and Barack argue about who was less of a “Reaganite” during one of their few lively debate exchanges.
I actually started to get a little bit excited about McCain. Then he went on the warpath to “mend his riff” with the Republican Party. I can only speak for myself, but the fact that he had a “riff” with the Republicans is exactly why i started to get excited about him. No, he hadn’t presented any more details on his plans than any other candidate, but there was a glimmer of hope that he was a candidate that thought for himself.
(And before all the comments start, Ron Paul is the worse of all the candidates when it comes to detailing how he would execute on his promises. Just saying you are going to cut and eliminate everything doesn’t mean you know how to do it and/or could get it done.)
So here we are, our country has the same problem we have every four years, our remaining candidates are politicians. They know how to spend other people’s money. They know how to assign responsibility to someone else. They know how to beg for other people’s money. They know how to campaign, schmooze and kiss babies. They have no earthly idea how to accomplish any of their promises.
So here is my hope. My hope is that the entire primary process is just the preseason. That its nothing more than an expensive introduction to the Republican and Democratic candidates and once they have picked their winner, a wealthy individual will nominate them self to compete with the 2 parties and run for President.
Are you listening Mayor Bloomberg ? For less than the cost of opening a tent pole movie, you can change the status quo . I’m not saying that I’m going to vote for you yet. As I said above, the devil is in the details. But, I’m betting that unlike the current choices, you recognize the difference between politics and results.