BC Business
Sore temples? Fits of anger? Frequent sighs of exasperation? You, my friend, are likely suffering from election exhaustion, a much-dreaded malady in our country today. But have no fear! Step right up to my rickety podium as I unveil a miracle tonic that’ll cure that suffrage suffering put that swing back in your stride.
In times like these, speculations, accusations and exaggerations fly rampant, clogging headlines and cramming columns. Personally, I no longer stroll through the newspaper; I slog. But my fail-safe fix is at the same time simple and effective: simply stop listening.
I know it’s our collective patriotic duty to be educated on the prime matters of state before we cast our ballots, but I say when our leaders do little more than toss pointless fighting words back and forth, our responsibilities as an audience end. Such banter is not worth our attention. Besides, there’s likely nothing in the election rhetoric you need to know. And here’s why.
First off, the politician at the podium is likely not even speaking to you. Most of us know who we will vote for long before we reach the ballot box. We’ve made up our minds long ago about whose basic philosophies align with our own, which personalities we can believe in and who all the greater devils are. And despite all the bickering that goes on, these things change very little. Political strategists know this too. So it is not for the majority that the parties rant and rave, but for the minority: for those whose minds might be changed in the course of a campaign.
As a journalist, I have interviewed several politicians (not hundreds, of course, as would be the case for my political-beat counterparts), and I have found that their prime goal in any kind of speaking, speeching or interviewing occasion is simply to stay on message. It’s very hard to get to know them through their discourse; they are trained to stick to the platform. So instead of making ourselves sick with their rhetoric, it’s arguable much more effective to simply go to the source. When was the last time you read a party platform? They’re enlightening.
You see, all the basic ideas behind the party are here in about as undiluted a form as can be found. Sure, it’s still a highly promotional, candy-coated presentation of the party, but it’s the best you’re going to get. If you read the document and still can’t grasp what the party is actually proposing, well, that should tell you something about their capacity to govern. If, on the other hand, they do successfully lay out a policy direction, I think you will find it a much more straightforward, rational and moderate presentation than anything that comes out of TV campaign ads or (shudder) question period.
And the best part is, you won’t have to listen to the enraged clamour anymore. You can hit mute knowing that you’ve done your due diligence, basing your decision on actual polices rather than on who most successfully demonizes whom. Then, the next time the government in power screeches that the masses are too fatigued to endure another election, you can respond, with the vigour of the well-rested, “Not so. Bring it on.”