Blind Politics

[BigGreen]

YAY...my first ever "AR Lounge Politically Charged Thread".

Anyway, having a mini "discussion" with my girlfriend's mother this past weekend regarding politics, namely the upcoming presidential election, it occurred to me that an absolutely overwhelming portion of not only the American population, but of the portion of the population purported to be informed, educated, politically "active" on some level, or otherwise engaged in the democratic process really appear to as blindly and dogmatically follow a certain political ideology with very little self-critique of their views or introspection on any level.

An example: my gf's mother is a fairly intelligent, proactive woman. She built a business from the ground up and has done an amazing job raising two wonderful offspring. Yet, when she expounded upon her hatred for Bush, and I simply asked if she could articulate from where this hatred came, she was virtually at a complete loss to sensibly/logically explain her stance. Now, don't get me wrong, this goes both ways: I've since found Bush supporters, Kerry supporters, Bush haters, Kerry haters, and everything in between are, by and large, unable to truly provide a cogent rationale for their position.

Now, this is a **** scary thing in my view. I could from this point compose pages upon pages on the way that our pop culture, postmodern society, etc etc has reduced the electoral process to the same shallow debasement that informs brand choice and loyalty in the consumer market, but I'll refrain. I guess my point is that, for something as vital to our nation's ongoing survival, I am not struck with confidence as to the level of engagement that our democratic process currently personifies - particularly in the segment of the population (self) charged with upholding these "ideals".

Anyone care to chime in?

[einstein1905]

I completely agree. It nauseates me when someone reads the front page of their local "unbiased" newspaper and/or listens to a 30 minute political radio program and assumes that they are now well-informed. This is almost as bad as MTV's BS "rock the vote" crap.....your voice counts......."get out and vote". BS! You're 18, and you live at home and work at Wendy's. Don't vote, you know nothing. Your vote is less than meaningless, it's harmful. It's your right to vote, but it's your responsibility to make an educated decision if you choose to exercise this right. I don't want some punk kid casting his vote based on the canned opinions he was spoon-fed by the head cashier over there at Wendy's.

All that said, I've never voted, and I never will. It's not nearly as important as people portray it to be. I roll my eyes at the pople that can recite, ad nauseum, trivial facts about political candidates, yet know nothing about themselves, friends, family, etc. Do me a favor people, and do away with the superficial political back-and-forths at the smalltown cafes (and everywhere else in this country), and go live your life. YOU have, by far, the biggest impact on your life. Gov't plays a very minor role, and that role doesn't change to any appreciable degree, based on who lives in the White House. So, what? Your taxes went up a few %.....big deal....why spend 8 hours/day bitchin' about it? Live your life....do something with your life besides wallowing in your bitter resentment over the choices you've made (or not made). Get a **** weekend paper route to offset the 2% wage change if it's that big of a deal. If YOU take full advantage of your life and potential, there isn't anything gov't can do to you that has any real significance.

[BigGreen]

I roll my eyes at the pople that can recite, ad nauseum, trivial facts about political candidates, yet know nothing about themselves, friends, family, etc. Do me a favor people, and do away with the superficial political back-and-forths at the smalltown cafes (and everywhere else in this country), and go live your life.

Very, VERY well said. Not to get off topic, but even sicker (somehow) are those who know who "Big Boi 2000" or the lead singer from D-12 are "with" but probably couldn't tell you their best friend's fears, hopes, dreams, innermost thoughts or anything to that effect. I'm no marxist or anything like that, but I have become very jaded of late as to the effect that pop-culture has on our cultural landscape (and, yes, I include politics under the umbrella of pop-culture these days). I guess I could be called a neo-Gramscian perhaps.

[rambo]

I guess I could be called a neo-Gramscian perhaps.

That's probably not the first thing I'd call you.

[Jeremy34]

I completely agree. It nauseates me when someone reads the front page of their local "unbiased" newspaper and/or listens to a 30 minute political radio program and assumes that they are now well-informed. This is almost as bad as MTV's BS "rock the vote" crap.....your voice counts......."get out and vote". BS! You're 18, and you live at home and work at Wendy's. Don't vote, you know nothing. Your vote is less than meaningless, it's harmful. It's your right to vote, but it's your responsibility to make an educated decision if you choose to exercise this right. I don't want some punk kid casting his vote based on the canned opinions he was spoon-fed by the head cashier over there at Wendy's.

All that said, I've never voted, and I never will. It's not nearly as important as people portray it to be. I roll my eyes at the pople that can recite, ad nauseum, trivial facts about political candidates, yet know nothing about themselves, friends, family, etc. Do me a favor people, and do away with the superficial political back-and-forths at the smalltown cafes (and everywhere else in this country), and go live your life. YOU have, by far, the biggest impact on your life. Gov't plays a very minor role, and that role doesn't change to any appreciable degree, based on who lives in the White House. So, what? Your taxes went up a few %.....big deal....why spend 8 hours/day bitchin' about it? Live your life....do something with your life besides wallowing in your bitter resentment over the choices you've made (or not made). Get a **** weekend paper route to offset the 2% wage change if it's that big of a deal. If YOU take full advantage of your life and potential, there isn't anything gov't can do to you that has any real significance.

I agree with almost everything you say, but I do question why you don't vote....You seem like an educated person, which is exactly the people we need voting on things such as who is going to represent many important aspects of our lives. I mean, if you are a well informed individual, why not take the little effort it takes to cast your vote? It may seem insignificant, but your vote counts just as much as anyone else. I'm not trying to flame, I'm just wondering.

Next, most people in this country don't have a clue what is going on around them, they live in a bubble and only care about something if they can see its effect on them personally, at this moment. It burns me up inside every time I talk to someone about political issues or simply just current events and their immediate reply is "I don't care" or "it doesn't matter". In my opinion, this lazy attitute that many Americans carry is exactly what is going to bring an end to the American way of life as we know it.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying EVERYONE should get out and vote to voice their opinion, but rather that everyone should start caring about what is happening around them, realize that by watching "Dateline" or "60 Minutes", it doesn't make you well informed. Start using that brain you're born with to form opinions logically (god forbid we use our brain for something other than work or school ). I could go on all night, but I think this is enough for now.

Jeremy

[BigGreen]

That's probably not the first thing I'd call you.

Ahh yes, given your thorough knowledge of my love for literature, you'd probably first qualify me as an Arnoldian-structuralist. LOL...oh jolly good, jolly good. That was rich.

[SV-1]

There are *way* too many big words in this thread.


BTW, I hate Bush cuz IMO he's a squirrelly lying little weasel.

[tryingtogetbig]

BTW, I hate Bush cuz IMO he's a squirrelly lying little weasel.

There you BG.....SV-1 was kind enough to contribute an example to your theory that people don't really follow their ideals blindly. What more of an example could one ask for as to why they don't like GW......

[SV-1]

There you BG.....SV-1 was kind enough to contribute an example to your theory that people don't really follow their ideals blindly. What more of an example could one ask for as to why they don't like GW......

[Swellin]

Interesting points guy. Time for a little introspection for all.

The crux of this paradox is people being focused on their own micro socio-economic situations, yet knowing nothing about those around them, is further complicated by their undying lust for changes on the macro socio-economic level. Funny huh?

The quote about knowing whom "Big Boi is with" is actually very insightful. It certainly had me slapping my desk and laughing aloud. I know plenty of these "star gazers." Lustful of the success of others.... driven to this via pop-culture.

I am incredibly critical of all news media....I pick and choose what I see as fact. As such, those around me think that I know less than them about "what is going on." They are right...I know a lesser volume, but I have a better understanding of the truth...because I don't just hear...I listen. Yeah, I'm a fruitcake so don't listen to me.

Where does this lead us?

How do we change the status quo?

Were our parents right..."MTV will lead to the fall of man?"

[hercules88]

this is why i dont post in political threads. dont have alot of info and dont stay current with politics. so anything i would say would all be second hand. i have met alot of people like your gf's mom. just makes you wonder

[saboudian]

I am incredibly critical of all news media....I pick and choose what I see as fact. As such, those around me think that I know less than them about "what is going on." They are right...I know a lesser volume, but I have a better understanding of the truth...because I don't just hear...I listen.

Its pretty tough to get past all the bias in the news, especially because so much of the news now is not actually news and facts but just a bunch of guys yelling at each other, and its really almost always just a bunch of crap. Every american news source is of course going to be ethnocentric to some extent, the fact that fox news is the most popular of the news channels is scary because they are so "american" or ethnocentric.

Anyways, this is why I try to encourage ppl to watch c-span, and i'll tell you what, its pretty interesting now, bush certainly has a certain effect on the congressman and other politicals, as they're practically screaming at each other now.

I also would encourage ppl to catch the up and coming presidential debates which are usually fairly exciting if you've never seen them, or at least they make for good snl skits.

Oh and by the way, what does neo mean when u put it in front of a word? I always hear ppl say it but its never really bothered me until i started reading this book for school yesterday and it uses it everywhere but doesn't explain what it means.

[Dude-Man]

It's my personal opinion that there should be an exam for everyone who wants to vote. If you don't know your country's laws, history, and especially the finer points of the political parties, you shouldn't be able to vote.

In some cases i just feel that some people are too dumb to vote. Especially those that blindly follow party politics.

Oh yeah, and i think that my town shouldn't be able to vote for the taxes they pay.. town budgets should be the same as federal budgets. If i can't vote Bush's huge increase in spending down, why should the elderly in my town be able to vote down a new football field for my little brother?

[Dude-Man]

Oh and by the way, what does neo mean when u put it in front of a word? I always hear ppl say it but its never really bothered me until i started reading this book for school yesterday and it uses it everywhere but doesn't explain what it means.

neo means new.

[bermich]

My girlfriend follows the democrats BLINDLY and it is the only thing that almost makes me leave her for. Whatever the democratic media believes, she believes. If the media said republicans wanna eat your first born child, she would believe it.

[einstein1905]

Not directed at anyone in particular here.....

I can't stand the terms "Democrat" or "Republican" nor "liberal/conservative". The mere idea that you can, somehow, categorize yourself into any one of these labels, as if there are only two possible schools of thought on any particular topic just churns by gut.

[rambo]

the elderly?

I vote for a Jacksonian Lottery System to deal with that problem.

[chicamahomico]

I think I have an idea but I could be totally off base. Please explain what this is rambo.

I vote for a Jacksonian Lottery System to deal with that problem.

[rambo]

I think I have an idea but I could be totally off base. Please explain what this is rambo.

Remember the book "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson?


If so...


*rimshot*