Insulting the Electorate

Is it any wonder that we have no respect for politicians?

Election primary season is upon us here in West Texas, and the radio airwaves are filled with advertisements for Republican politicians. (Democrats are an endangered species, hence no advertisements.) Rather than a respectful discussion of issues, we are being subjected to a shameful display of lies and deceit wherein one politician is attempting to distort the record(s) or past actions of his opponent(s) in the hope that the voters will consider him (the liar) to be more conservative on the issues. One example is that our sitting Congressman has a radio advertisement that says his opponent has, for the last 16 years, contributed money to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid (both of whom are, of course, stepchildren of Satan). This advertisement forced the opponent to create his own radio rebuttal wherein he explained that, as an eye surgeon, he contributed to his professional organization which in turn provided support for various political parties including the Democrats. The topics for which the misrepresentation is most vociferous are taxes, illegal immigration, Obama Care, Barack Obama and the Democrats.

The reality seems to be that any lie is fine so long as it helps win the primary. There is a whole industry that has been built up to create and perpetuate the lies, from the advertising agencies to the media outlets that profit from running the commercials. Yesterday I heard one rather ignorant host on one of the radio stations saying that these Republican candidates agree on 95% of the issues, so they need to draw sharp distinctions with their opponents on the 5% where they disagree, and the radio advertisements are acceptable because they do that. But they don't; they are lies and distortions that directly profit the station for which the commentator works. So I guess that is what makes it acceptable.

Truth is hard to find when candidates will twist their own records into what they think you want to hear and have no reservation about misrepresenting their opponents. So what is the truth? The only truth that I can see in any of this is that the politicians who would distort the record of their opponent(s) are showing their disrespect for the people of this state. Put the truth on the table, put your records on the table and let us decide. Lying to us is not only insulting, it shows us what you really think of us.