What I learned from the Elections (and why I'm not watching)

I must say, the excitement of the last couple weeks leading up to the 2012 US Elections has been quite interesting. And not necessarily because I care about the outcome…because I don’t. But because it has been quite remarkable to see where the energies and interests of so many lie. Truth be told, I probably would care, if I knew how one result over the other, would impact my life in any way. But I am not even a US citizen, albeit if I were, I would probably be wondering the same thing.

Let me be clear about something. If I were a US citizen, I should ensure I am adequately informed, and also ensure I do my part in influencing the outcome, based on my acquired information. An outcome that could potentially affect my life and those around me. This thought leaves me a bit concerned.

I need to be adequately informed. What do we mean by this? We need to ensure we have accurate information about how one particular candidate being chosen will affect various matters of economic concern, as one important example. The issue is, that most of our information comes from campaigning. What the candidate SAYS he is going to do. Frankly, I would be afraid to vote. God forbid I was the deciding vote who put a candidate in power who ended up negatively impacting the country, and more importantly, my life.

It is amazing to me to see how many spent COUNTLESS hours in and around matters and publicity concerning this election,  often with much to say, many of whom either don’t qualify to vote, or just didn’t bother to.

What fascinates us so much about the election to spend all this time watching tv, reading social media sites, reading the newspapers? Is it that we feel that the person we want to win is definitely the best choice for ourselves, our loved ones, and the country on a whole, from an objective standpoint? Or is it an emotional draw to one particular candidate, or against one? Is it that their speeches are better? They are better speakers? That we have an attachment to a minority (or the opposite of a minority in this case - whatever that is)? That we have an attachment to the underdog in an election? What really represents our affiliations? The Elections will be determined shortly after I finish this paper. How will your day tomorrow be different? How will your year be different? No doubt it will be, but do we know how?

What I find at play also, is what I call the “Depend on the Lottery” effect. We all know those few who perhaps don’t take matters of their financial success in their own hands. Some probably will give statements like “when I win the lottery, I will have money,” and simply do little much else about that. Their life’s determination is moved from a dependency on their control of their life to that of a random draw. Perhaps an election is a way for us to hope for better and expecting these results to come from the outcome of an election. If he wins, life will be better, and so on.

I care about the outcome of my life, my friends and family, and the human population on a whole. And I also think that we ARE RESPONSIBLE to make the world a better place in the best way we see fit. Perhaps I have played devil’s advocate tonight (yet once again), but it is merely in the hope that we start thinking about the very system that is the process in which we determine our future leaders, and by extension, future results.

The goal was to provoke thought. And I look forward to your comments.

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