I know some of us are excited about the election because many of us want change and we can’t have it soon enough. Many of us already know who we’re going to vote for, but even if we do, we still have to endure all of these annoying political ads. I sometimes wonder how the world was before political ads became a necessity. At first there were no commercials, then there were probably respectable ones, (I’m assuming). Then all hell broke loose. I would say 15% of the ads are respectable, but most of them are ridiculous and they appeal to the lowest common denominator. Such ads follow a standard recipe. They put unflattering still photos of the opposing candidate, sinister music, and a string of negative generalizations. Sometimes, I’ve seen incoherent words strung together as labels. That way, claims can’t be refuted.
Here’s a quote from one of the McPain commercials…
“Tough rules on Wall Street... stop CEO rip offs... protect your savings and pensions”
Notice he doesn't say he will do these things; he just makes a fuzzy connotation. I also can’t believe that the candidates approve of some of these commercials. Can their advisers really twist their arms to that extent? Perhaps the candidates’ greed for power takes over. What happens though is that if one candidate puts out a commercial with some sleazy personal attacks, the other candidate has to respond with similar content. You can’t take the high road to respond because there are too many dumb people out there that believe what they hear on any political commercial whether it is true or not. So we’re stuck with these lame ads every two years and they’re shown to the point that they’re sickening and probably reduce our faith in government. And any donation I might make to a candidate I support just feeds the ad machine. There’s nothing we can do.
On a side-note, I always wonder who the voice-over people on the commercials are. They are probably very good actors because I find it hard to believe that their apparent conviction is genuine, especially with some of the statements they are scripted to say.
As the election draws closer, we have the pleasure of the political campaigns saving the best mudslinging for last. Each camp wants that last strong push before the elections and now McPain is bringing up past associations that Obama had with a somewhat radical guy. In response, the Obaiden camp has to bring up McCain’s involvement with the Keating Five. I did announce that I’m running for president in 2016, but I hope to not have to stoop to the level of 99% of politicians out there and create any ads with personal attacks. I will run with dignity. And in case you haven’t realized, the staff of one at Things I’ve Noticed have endorsed Barrack Obama for President of the United States. To me, the reasons are obvious and I don't need to explain my choice, but I will do so right before the election to hopefully convince some undecided readers to make the best choice on election day.
And in case you haven't done so, (and it's not too late for your state), REGISTER AND VOTE!
+ Atul
I do sometimes wonder if we'd be better off if we banned paid political ads for the presidency completely.
Lesser offices, it may be the only way to get seen....but you can get plenty of information about the major candidates at least in so many other forms.
I actually worked with the Chicago Annenberg initiative and Acorn...neither group was very radical at all.
Posted by: chancelucky | October 16, 2008 at 02:28 AM
I know. Just think of the charities we could support. The whole Acorn thing is blown out of proportion as only the last registration for a person counts. As long as only one vote is cast for that person, it's not fraud.
Posted by: Atul | October 18, 2008 at 01:27 AM