Bummer

A month or so ago I decided to start paying attention to the presidential race. I did it with great trepidation. I knew I had to pay attention, but I also knew how depressing it would be. First of all, when was the last contest that had more than one really good candidate (The West Wing election doesn't count). Hell, when was the last presidential election with one good candidate. Second, I detest campaign ads, and campaigning in general. All we get are platitudes, lies, and nastiness. There are real policies in there, but you have to wade through talk of slum lords and Reagan worship to get to them. Third, after the last two presidential elections, the very mention of a presidential election fills me with great foreboding. Fourth, I'm not sure when exactly to fit it in to my day. Maybe during diaper changes. That's what I need, a little flat screen television on the changing table. Fifth, I knew that really following an American election meant relying on the American press. The BBC wasn't going to cut it. This is the real kicker for me. It means I find myself reading stories about how Obama snubbed Clinton by not shaking her hand at the State of the Union. How is this important? Why is this news? Is this election for President or student council? And that story was CNN. I would love to make fun of the story lines on FoxNews, but I refuse to watch or read anything they produce. At least MSNBC has Keith Olberman leading their election coverage. That raises the possibility that sports will infiltrate into election night. It also makes possible references to reconstruction, Lincoln, and Andrew Jackson. No other election coverage went back before 1980. For the record, I would make more use of NPR if I had a car radio which received FM signals. Anyway, at the end of this nonsense I am sure we will have selected a horrible president (Romney is still alive), but at least I will be able to go back to the BBC full-time.