It’s Summer and I’m sick of politics.
Whether you’re a republican or democrat, you can’t deny how irritating it is to turn on your TV and constantly hear the latest report on the election headline-maker. And it seems to have gotten worse over the years as the news cycle is now 24/7 in the era of social media. How will I make it to November without losing my marbles?
Over-Promise, Under-Deliver
I think it’s a prerequisite in “Becoming a Politician 101” to master the art of promising {crazy} things to your constituents without having to be held accountable. You want free education? Consider it done! You don’t want to pay taxes on your income or property anymore? No problem! What would our kids say if we promised them ice cream for dinner every night but made them eat peas instead? We probably wouldn’t hear the end of it… so why do we let world leaders get away with the same things? When listening to them campaign for my vote, I’ve decided to tune them out to the sound of Charlie Brown’s teacher.
Career Politicians
Oh, you know what it’s like to raise a family on one income while attempting to save for your kids’ college? I bet you do, Mister Career Politician. While you’re earning a six-figure salary {for life}, with amazing benefits and a pension {that you likely won’t need since you’re getting paid for life}, the rest of America is trying to save for their future while the cost of education and health care continues to rise. It must be nice to have a summer home on Cape Cod and a winter escape in Breckenridge. While that may be the norm for you, Madam Secretary, it’s just another un-relatable experience for us “commoners.”
Basically Kindergarteners
How many more of these debates do we have to watch? All it is is a handful of grown adults acting like a throng of kindergarteners fighting over who sat down on the story rug first. {PS God Bless Kindergarten teachers; There’s a special place in Heaven for you.} They interrupt, talk over each other, spew insults and lies, and, in the end, the one that does the least damage to his/her peers is dubbed the “loser.” What is that teaching our children? When they interrupt us on the phone or butt into a conversation they are met with a firm, “don’t be rude” or “wait your turn.” When a kid picks on another on the playground, does the teacher just turn a blind eye? No, because we’re teaching our children to respect one another and show compassion for their peers.
The Facebook Defenders/Opposers
Don’t have cable and lose out on the “opportunity” to hear about the candidates? Consider yourself lucky! I bet, though, that you do have Facebook and can’t scroll through your newsfeed without a family member or friend that shares their political agenda on a regular basis. Some people feel so strongly on certain topics that they will seek out the opposers just to start a Facebook war over a comment that one candidate made to/about the other. I’ve seen relationships fall apart because of this level of disrespect – all over someone they don’t personally know, a lie they heard, and an agenda/belief being pushed. Can’t we just agree to disagree?
While it’s our civic duty to make our voices heard by voting in any/all election{s}, is there a way we can tune the rest of the campaign trail out for the next four months? How about we as the people of our country start expecting more from our leaders than the “same old, same old” behavior they’ve grown accustomed to?
Whether you’re a Hilary, Bernie, Ted or Donald supporter, we can all agree that election years suck.
It’s nice to know I’m not the only one over this! I’ve been tempted to unfollow people on Facebook b/c I’m getting so tired of political posts and “if you support ___ candidate, just unfriend me now” posts.