They're Not Really "Idiots"
Mon, March 19, 2012 | Post a Comment | 
We never seem to have any good candidates
When elections come we're always disappointed with our choices. It seems like they’re all idiots. We understand, people aren’t perfect, but come on! This is the best we’ve got?
The truth is, the people who run are actually better than most
To run for office, you have to get support—someone to give you money. Sure, you can go a long way on the $5 and $10 contributions, but you better have some big donors too.
Who has big money to contribute?
High achievers in business primarily, or at least their heirs. They certainly aren’t stupid. They don’t write big checks to just anyone. So, if someone is running for office, they have to be sharp enough to convince some special people to get behind them. If you donate big money to someone to help them get elected, you really have to want it to happen. You’ve got to be convinced they are special, outstanding…the best for the job.
But that’s not how they are presented in the news
The media attacks them, examining everything they say and do in minute detail. They hound them with questions, trying to provoke them into an outburst, seeing if they can unearth some hidden, nasty secret. Like dogs gnawing on a bone, any imperfection, the smallest inconsistency, is attacked and commented on endlessly.
People who have had incredible success in life are reduced to looking like clowns
They have run projects, built businesses, accomplished incredible things, been celebrated in the media and praised for their outstanding success. They are used to being in charge. They are used to being respected and treated in a special way. Everywhere they go they are greeted with smiles! What an honor! Thanks for coming. Great to meet you...
Then someone gets the idea!
This is exactly who we need to run for office in the next election! Of course, it’s flattering, first they decline then eventually accept. The Democratic and Republican Parties don’t troll for morons to run for office. They want to win! They want the best, the brightest, and most charismatic on their side. They go after these people with everything they’ve got to convince them to run.
That’s when their life changes, when they accept and become candidates
They used to be in charge. Now they are reduced to trying to please everyone. They want everyone’s vote and they want support (money) from as many as they can. They used to make decisions based on what was best, now they have to consider how it will look to the voters. They used to have privacy. Now life is an open book.
NOW THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BE PERFECT!
But they aren’t perfect. They know that. The public and the media know the candidates are human, but then they forget. Why? Because people expect perfection (or something close) in their leaders. They are supposed to know everything and everyone. They are supposed to always say the right thing. But they don’t...each candidate has at least one chance to say something truly dumb.
Outstanding in one area doesn’t mean outstanding in all
Just because they were successful in one area doesn’t mean they're prepared to lead in another. Think about football. You can take a big lineman, maybe even a Hall of Fame caliber athlete, and have everyone think they are the greatest! Vote them to the Pro bowl every year! Respected, beloved by all!
Yet stick the same lineman in at quarterback and watch the criticism flood in! Big clumsy clod! Can’t throw, can’t recognize the blitzes, can’t lead…get him out of there! The hero lineman becomes a disgrace at quarterback.
That’s what happens in politics
Thank goodness for television, internet and newspaper analysts and columnists! They are supposed to quiz, question and challenge. They are supposed to test the candidates. They actually do us a great service. Unless a candidate can face this kind of pressure and defend themselves convincingly, how will they handle the job if elected?
Unfortunately, the critics often do their job too well
By the time they get through attacking the candidates like a ravaging pack of wolves, no one looks good. It seems like everyone is reduced to looking like an idiot and the only choice for us is which idiot to elect. It’s easy to wonder, how did we get stuck with this collection of numbskulls to choose from?
But they aren’t numbskulls, they are the best available
They have done things to get noticed. They stand out. That's how the power brokers and king makers found Barack Obama, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum to begin with. They did well enough in their areas to rise to the top and get noticed as someone who could possibly be trusted to do an outstanding job in government. Maybe they have no chance of that, maybe they don’t have what it takes for that at all, but that doesn’t make them idiots.
So, let’s remember that as we go into the election.
If these candidates wind up looking like idiots after being scarred, tarred and feathered by the campaign process, let’s keep perspective.
They may not be qualified to play quarterback, but that doesn’t mean that in another arena they aren’t still a Hall of Fame caliber of person. You don’t have to vote for them, but give them their respect.
This is the Introduction to the series, The Free Multimillion Dollar, Multimedia Reality Series on Winning: WHAT YOU CAN LEARN FROM ELECTIONS. Related posts will be coming soon.
