Election Whatever: I Stopped Caring

A few of these elections in, I realized the format just wasn't working. I wanted to keep them short, but an election just has too many characters and too complex a story to tell in such a short period of time. There's no suspense, no twists because we all know the results.

As we get to the more recent elections, it's all stuff people know. This month was supposed to be Kennedy/Nixon 1960. We all know Kennedy won because he's pretty, and Nixon lost because he looked stiff on TV. We all also know the Kennedys basically bought the election, and the unsubstantiated fraud accusations aren't even worth mentioning. Kennedy defined the '60s, and Nixon probably would have made Vietnam worse. At least that guy never made it into the White House.

Oh wait.



In November, I'm still stuck between Carter/Ford 1976 and Reagan/Carter 1980. Both elections were all about cleaning up after Nixon, but 1980 was also about how awful Carter was. While 1980 was more of a game changer, 1976 was hilarious because both candidates were so awful. Nixon screwed up the country so badly we went with two nitwits simply because they were nice guys.

December was supposed to be about the election of 2000. Really, though, what can I say? I already covered the freakish connection to 1876, and they made a sweet Showtime movie with Kevin Spacey and Laura Dern that does a pretty good job of covering the basics.

Next year, I promise the return to the fun, short-form of last year. I'm teetering between "Know Your Vice Presidents" and "Notable Non-Presidents." Hell, it's my blog, I can do both if I want.

In closing, VOTE NOVEMBER 2ND. Take some time to read up on the candidates and ballot measures. If you think voting is just a pain, take a second to listen to this story:

An amateur civil engineer lived in a small village in Bangladesh. In his dabbling, he discovered a way his village could use water more efficiently and could, therefore, prevent frequent droughts. He took the time to put together a well thought-out presentation, which paid respect to the government and humbly suggested a course of action. He was executed for daring to believe he knew more than the government.

You live in a country where the people take part in government. Every time you can vote and you choose not to, you're spitting on his grave.