Nobody can call me politically astute; in fact, I’ve spent most of 2007 trying to avoid any discussions, debates, or debacles that reek of politics. But, with the Iowa caucus being held tomorrow, it’s time to become an educated voter. No, I’m not planning to visit Des Moines and participate; rather, I told myself about ten months ago that on January second I would take off the blinders I’ve deliberately worn and spend time learning about the candidates, their ideas, and — perhaps most significantly — their voting or vetoing records.
Earl frequently says that past behavior is a good indicator of future performance, and I agree. My mother often quoted the phrase, “What you do speaks so loudly, I cannot hear what you are saying.” Usually she said this when I had done something she disapproved of and was trying to apologize.
In this day of over-the-top rhetoric and in-your-face confrontation, I’m thinking these two sayings apply. It isn’t really about what the candidates promise in the heat of the race as it is about what they’ve done after other victories. Besides, with negative campaigning becoming a hallmark of political advertising, we hardly learn what the candidates themselves really stand for. I mean REALLY stand for.
To show up as an educated voter in November, I’ve decided to first refine where I stand on such issues as education, the war in Iraq, the economy, illegal immigration, and the family (This list is not exhaustive, only representative). Then I plan to study the candidates and vote for the one whose past performance suggests a match with my thinking. I have the feeling that some of the candidates want the process to be the other way around. They want to tell me what the “right” thing to think is.
I’m not sure which is the politically astute way — theirs or mine — but I’ve spent many hours with my blinders on trying to decide what to do when I removed them. This is what I came up with, and now that January 2, 2008 is here I plan to begin.
Leave a Reply