Is the Population Too Stupid to Vote?
Written by Confusion support on April 15, 2008 – 6:32 am -
It is very possible that the election process isn’t as sound as it could be. Should the general population of the United States be voting for a President, or are they too ignorant?
Given that the majorities of voters are getting their information on Presidential candidates from a media source, or have very little information on each candidate, it is hard to imagine that there is much intelligence going into each vote.
It is quite obvious that candidates, when making speeches, are going to say what is popular, mixed in with very little of their own true feelings, in order to win. If voters are judging a candidate by what speeches they have watched, they are most likely not getting an accurate picture of that candidate’s heart-felt beliefs. We need not mention the well know inaccuracies of stories in print!
Presidential candidates are constantly saying how they are going to do “this and that” when in office, or how they did something so great while in a previous office. We know they can do very little, unless Congress agrees. So it is ridiculous if a voter fully believes everything a candidate says they will do. I know this sounds simply logical to many of us, but there ARE voters out there taking every word of a Presidential candidate as gospel. This is not the wisest decision.
Many voters simply vote on one issue, such as abortion. Whatever candidate matches their beliefs in this one area is the one they vote for, regardless of the candidates other philosophies. I, as many, have judged Presidential candidates on their appearance, as much as what they say. “If they just didn’t look good enough to be a President they weren’t getting my vote!” It is known that a good-looking male candidate has the edge over a less attractive one.
There are the voters who simply vote Democrat or Republican regardless of how much they actually like the candidate. This is the ultimate in stupidity. This assumes that every Republican thinks a like, as does every Democrat, Libertarian, etc.
Are there more than a handful of voters out there that really feel they know a candidate well? Never once have I felt I had a firm grasp on a Presidential candidate’s true beliefs. Are there a lot of voters doing thorough research on each candidate? I highly doubt it. The majority of the voters are “semi-ignorant” on the subject matters talked about by the candidates.
So the question remains if the mostly ignorant population should be voting for a President or is it far too dangerous? Should only Congress or the Electoral College be voting for the President? Should Presidential candidates submit a resume to Congress as if he or she is applying for a job (this works in business), or should he or she be “elected” by an ignorant populace? The thought of all the people having the ability to elect their President sounds enticing and like a cornerstone of freedom, but it is probable that a large group of politically-wise peers (such as Congress, an Electoral College, or maybe the state’s legislators) would secure a more intelligently elected President.
Do not be alarmed at these questions. The framers of the Constitution wrestled with the same questions! Many of them firmly questioned if the “common person” would ever be intelligent enough to pick a good President. The question is still pertinent today.
Tags: history of voting, importance of voting in americaPosted in Uncategorized |
April 15th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
I have to agree with you on your perspective here. I also wonder “why” people are voting for a particular candidate, and if it is in fact for the right reason(s). It seems that so many people in today’s world just ‘follow suit’ and they seem to do and say what other people are doing and saying instead of thinking for themselves. Kind of frightening, isn’t it?
How many Presidents of the United States have actually fulfilled the promises they made to the public while campaigning?! We need a way to know the actual “person” who is running instead of the person who is in competition and trying so desperately to win. It’s as bad as going to a kids’ soccer game and listening to the parents bicker over a call the ref has made! Makes me not want to vote anymore! Not to mention the fact that we don’t even know if our votes are being counted correctly in the first place! Another blog for you…
April 18th, 2008 at 10:13 am
Well, given that we also elect our congresspersons, I’m not sure leaving it up to them is any wiser. I think the system we have is about as good as you can get it. Leaving it up to a smaller group would create a situation that is more susceptible to corruption. Unfortunately, there are those who vote as you have noted, which I find to be incredibly short-sighted as well, but hopefully the “informed” votes make up the majority. I tend to watch the debates and get information from print sources that are supposedly only outlining the candidate’s stances on the various issues. It’s always possible for some bias to slip into any discussion on the candidates, so we have to decipher it the best we can.
On second thought, given the idiot we now have in the White House, maybe we are too stupid to vote. Don’t know what a better process would be though.