In which we contemplate the election campaigns for Virginia Governor

[resqgeek]

This year's gubernatorial election in Virginia feels (to me, anyway) like a replay of last year's Presidential fiasco. The two (main) candidates are so busy telling us why we shouldn't vote for the other guy that they haven't really told us why we should vote for them. They are making promises that they won't be able to keep, like solving the transportation crisis without raising taxes. In general, they seem to be trying to tell the voters what they think the voters want to hear. Wouldn't it be nice, for once, for a candidate to say "I know you don't want to hear this, but here's the reality..." Wouldn't it be even better if both candidates started there and then clearly spelled out their differing plans for dealing with reality? Instead, we have politicians avoiding or glossing over the issues in ways that are misleading or inaccurate, because they're afraid the voters are too self-interested to handle the truth.

Come Nov. 8, I'll vote, but I don't know who I'll be voting for. I'm so very tired of entering the voting booth with the feeling that I'm not so much voting for someone as I am voting against the other guy. I honestly don't know that I've ever felt enthusiastic enough about any candidate to actually be voting for him/her, at least in a general election. I wish I thought that would be the case this year, but, sadly, it seems unlikely to happen.

Comments

[thebiblioholic.livejournal.com]

Sadly, the average voter doesn't seem to be able to cope with reality and actually understand issues. Politicians know who the voters are and say whatever needs to be said to get the votes based on what their pollers tell them.