Uneducated Consumer, Conspiracy Theorist, or Both

I personally feel I am a relatively uneducated consumer when it comes to the Presidential—or any—Election, and this is in part by my own choice. Candidates push a few points or policies especially hard, creating platforms that put many people on islands. By this I mean that America’s tendency to vote for someone based on certain specific issues often times makes a voter such as myself feel uncomfortable about all possible choices. With the exception of the people who tow a particular party line to their grave, most Americans are actually politically moderate. They hold some views that would be generally considered more Republican, and others that would be more closely associated with the Democratic Party. The problem occurs when one extremely polarizing issue, in this election the War in Iraq, becomes the entire reason that a particular candidate wins over a voter. Yes, the gazillions of dollars that we are pouring into the country is an issue, but not the only one. In past elections, abortion and gay and lesbian rights have been issues that have divided that nation, viciously separating people based on personal moral codes and religious doctrines.

Given the current economic state of our country, the “one issue” subject is an even more erroneous way of thinking about choosing a particular candidate than usual. We are in a state of financial crisis for a multitude of reasons, not because of one individual thing, and the man with the best plan should be the one in office, not the one who can appeal to the majority’s emotional, moral, or religious standpoints. As unoriginal as this idea is, it still is one of the main voting traps that exist.

My other problem with the upcoming election is a personal one that may make me sound crazy. I have developed a tendency to think like a conspiracy theorist in all issues pertaining to our government. In the case of elections, for example, I feel that both parties have underlying reasons to obtain congressional power that the public has no idea about, whether it is for certain individual’s personal gain or some other motive, I have a hard time thinking that I’m not being sold on empty promises from either party, so that an ulterior motive is reached, whatever said motive is. As stated before, I feel like an uneducated consumer, jaded by corrupt politicians—and by things I have seen in my favorite show, The Wire—over the years, and apathetic on my difference-making ability this fall in one of the most significant Presidential elections our country has seen.