The US Electoral Paradox

First of all, I would like to wish Happy Birthday to our site. It'll be one year old in 2 days. We know that we haven't rocked the world or even changed a thing. But, perhaps, we have managed to make a handful of people think. That is more than enough for Antigone and myself.

So, I am seizing this opportunity to return back to action after several weeks of absence from this site. As most of you know, the US elections are just around the corner, amongst a huge financial turmoil where the capitalistic system is crumbling and the US administration is using tax payer's money to save insurance companies and investment banks. Most certainly, we are looking at an amazing restructuring of the financial market. We are heading straight for a recession as some economists are predicting.

I will come back on this subject later. I want to stay on the issue of the elections themselves. I just read an article on the Economist site  about the Republican's strategy in winning the 2008 elections. It is a very well written article, on of those that I always wanted to write. In any case, it became apparent to me what the McCain - Palin-aka-hockey-mum strategy is all about. It's about simple popularism and family values and faith. At the same time, it is against the so-called snobbish libertarian intelligentsia which fails to understand the common folk and his/her needs. Everyday people can relate to Palin's humble background. They can relate to a hockey mum of five with a teenage pregnant daughter. At the same time, they fail to relate to the Ivy-league educated Obama and J. Biden who has been a political pro for all his life. 

This is exactly how Nixon got in power and history seems to be repeated itself. The idea of politicians trying to connect to voters is not new. If one reads the book by Rick Shenkman entitled "Just How Stupid Are We? Facing the truth about the American Voter", it becomes apparent that this idea of politicians connecting to the People is old. It actually makes perfect sense to me. So, the People have every right to try and vote for those who would go to Washington to serve the people of the country, as Palin has said.

But, but, but wait a second. We are not talking about politicians who believe in socialism and will help the People. Both Palin and McCain are members of the Republican Party. This, ladies and gents is where the paradox is. Since when did the Republicans care about the average folk? It is the same party that got the US into Iraq based on lies. It is the same party that allowed the house market to collapse. It is the same party that is currently spending billions of tax payer's money to save the arse of big corporations.

Shall I continue? Oh yes, it is the same party that is against public healthcare. The same party that wants tax cuts for big companies. As for Palin, where shall I start? She wants to drill the heck out of Alaska with God's Will. She is against abortion even if her own daughter was raped, according to this story, and I won't even start about her inexperience in foreign affairs.

One thing is certain. McCain chose Palin in order to lure the common folk into his trap and the American People seem, for the time being, to have taken the bait. Least they realise how much more they'll suffer in the hands of yet another Republican Reign.  When factories will be closing down, the economy is going down the drain and there won't be any public health care, then perhaps they will wake up. But we said the same thing about Georgy B. We thought that the US People will wake up and see what is going on after the Dabia years, but to no avail. The Americans are stuck in catch phrases such as 'family values', 'war on terror', 'faith'. 

Rick Shenkman defines five characteristics of stupidity: Sheer ignorance, negligence, wooden-headedness, shortsightedness and bone-headedness. I start to believe that the average American voter has all of them. Of course, this sounds extremely snobbish and the Palin-gang can use this to prove their points. They can easily say that I am one of them: An educated, snobbish and arrogant libertarian.

However, as a result of my education and liberal snobbish and arrogant ideas, I would like to see  my taxes to contribute towards free education and public healthcare. I would like to see big corporations paying taxes and I would love to see the Alaskan wilderness preserved and protected from the dirtry hands of oil companies. 

We are pro-choice and pro gun control. We want people to live free, to chose for themselves away from any type of fear and war. This is what the snobbish educated liberals believe. Unfortunately, the average American voter fails to see that. I only hope that, at the end, there will be enough voters to swing the vote against the populist Palin-gang. Otherwise, God save them and us from their stupidity.