Tuesday, November 29, 2011

The Presidential Adulation Fallacy

As a different Republican Presidential candidate has assumed front runner status at somewhat regular intervals throughout the primary campaign a narrative has developed that it is primarily the result of an electorate unsatisfied with their choices. This narrative takes the premise that many voters are searching for a candidate that checks all their boxes, to basically be all things to all primary voting Republicans. It’s impossible to know for certain as it’s impossible to read minds and get millions of people to agree on anything. While it may seem like a popularity contest, anyone who’s been stuck behind an indecisive person at Taco Bell knows that some people have difficulty choosing from a menu with a bunch of similar options. Perhaps what these polls are measuring is not exactly whom those questioned are going to vote for but whom they like at the moment as they learn more about them.

This is a good thing because it means that the voters are scrutinizing each candidate and learning as much as possible. It is also preferable because there is nothing more grating and dangerous than a large portion of the electorate falling head over heels for a candidate. The next president, just like each before them, is a human being above everything else and not a savior. Ours is a country ruled by fellow citizens in shifts by the discretion of their peers. It is better for the electorate at large to have some dislike of our leaders because they cannot be everything to everyone and should not only be elected by granting favors nor by a cult of celebrity.

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