I Scare Myself, by Martha Thomases – Brilliant Disguise

October 30, 2010 Martha Thomases 12 Comments

Halloween is the day we’re supposed to be scared, but I’m more frightened (and disgusted) by the week ahead.

It feels like, for the last 18 months, nearly every news show has had a story about how the Democrats are going to get trounced in Tuesday’s mid-term elections.  For a student of history, that’s a fairly simple prediction.  The President’s party usually gets trounced in the mid-terms.  Pundits get to look like geniuses for playing the odds.

And, by concentrating on the horse-race aspects of the contests (who will win?  by how much?), they can seem to avoid partisanship while still indulging in drama, tension and excitement.  I get why it’s an attractive story for advertising-supported journalists.

Unfortunately, it leaves so much out.  For example, does anyone know what the issues are?  More important, does anyone know what the candidates’ positions on the issues are, and how they propose to go about accomplishing their goals?

Yeah, it’s very scary.

Expressing your opinion gets you beat up.  There are two things I find especially horrifying about this story:  1) The media coverage I saw boiled down to, “Passions run high on both sides  (I’m looking at you, Chuck Todd) without anyone showing an example of Democrats/progressives/commies beating someone up and 2) the Tea Party started, according to the media narrative, when citizens showed up at Town Hall meetings to directly address their representatives.

Also, why was no one arrested?  Do the cops in Kentucky also work for Joe Miller?

I know, I know.  It’s not fair to blame candidates for the crazy behavior of their supporters.  We cannot hold rational discussions if we are inhibited by thoughts of how our words and intent can be twisted by lunatics.  However, can we at least agree that, when someone acts crazy because of (misunderstanding) something we said, we should explain what we actually meant?

The election will depend on turn-out, and I like it when as many people vote as possible.  Even in 2004, when I didn’t like the outcome of the election, I was encouraged that a relatively high percentage of eligible voters went to the polls.  At the same time, I would like it better if voters actually knew the facts about the issues the say are important to them, and didn’t just believe the hype.  Maybe it’s because I’m an elitist, but I personally prefer an educated population.

(Note:  No, I don’t believe in literacy tests for voters.  I don’t believe this is a problem that can be fixed with laws.  Just peer pressure.  And elitism.)

Like all really satisfying horror stories, this could end up with a happy ending.  At the last minute, the citizens could snap out of their stupor, start to pay attention, and fight back <http://www.newsweek.com/2010/10/22/poll-obama-approval-jumps-dems-more-fired-up.html>.

In the meantime, I hope you get a lot of candy tomorrow.  And I hope the sugar rush lasts until Tuesday, and you’re hyped up to vote..

Although she’d love to be at the Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert rally today, Media Goddess Martha Thomases decided that, between New York Comic-Con and Rhinebeck, she has been hit in the face by enough backpacks this month.