A Lesson To Be Remembered For November

I find that more often words of wisdom come not necessarily from those writing the op-ed pieces in the various publications – both hardcopy and online – but from those commenting upon them. In a recent WSJ piece by Kimberly Strassel about how it is the various state governors who are leading the way in reform, showing the federal government how to put the country's fiscal house back into order, two particularly astute observations were made by her readers – one stating the choice we have before us this coming November and the other quoting Thomas Sowell in relation to the first.

Stated the first, Steve Korn:

We have a choice between government that works and government that doesn't.

To which Gregg Sanderson replied:

Thomas Sowell had the best answer I've seen:

"Much of the social history of the Western world, over the past three decades, has been a history of replacing what worked with what sounded good."

And so it has been in our nation and others of the West. It has become less about logic and using the lessons from the past, showing us what works and what doesn't, and more about already dis-proven means of doing things that are implemented anyways because of how it makes someone (or a group of someones) feel.

As history has shown again and again, and particularly over the past few decades, making choices based upon or heavily influenced by feelings is almost always the wrong thing to do. The unintended consequences almost always outweigh any perceived benefits and end up doing more harm than doing nothing while providing little good.

Already Getting Tired Of It

For the most part I have been trying to avoid many of the campaign ads running on TV. But they are so pervasive that it is almost impossible to do so unless I'm watching something recorded on the DVR so I can skip right past them.

But I have noticed the tone and I have to say I'm not liking what I'm seeing.

It isn't that many of the ads are negative. That's pretty much par for the course. It is the focus of the ads and some of the outright falsehoods and very creative editing being put forward as the “Truth”.

Before I go any farther let me give you this warning – I am not non-partisan. I am not going to pretend I'm non-partisan and I'm going to admit right up front that I am biased.

The upcoming elections in November are driving a great big wedge between those who believe the big issue for this election is the economy and those who think it's about anything but the economy. The first group is right and the second is wrong.

As I have said time and time again to many of the anti-Tea party folks (most who seem to believe the Tea party wants to impose some kind of Christian theocracy), the social issues don't matter worth a damn if the nation is bankrupt. If the economy collapses things like abortion rights, same-sex marriage, drug laws, ObamaCare, Social Security, and a whole host of other social issues will become marginalized because everyone will be too busy just trying to survive. None of that crap will matter to anyone. As Democrat consultant James Carville famously said, “It's the economy, stupid!”

The GOP ticket is focusing on the right issues, specifically the economy, jobs, and overreaching government regulations that have only hurt the economy. The Democrats want to focus on anything but the economy, and that's understandable. It's a losing issue for them. So they'll focus on all kinds of social issues that most Americans could care less about. They'll put forth ads and whispering campaigns about how Romney wants to take us back to the Middle Ages, ban all contraception, put women back in the kitchen, and steal lollipops from the mouths of children. (The last is more likely to happen, but it will be Mike Bloomberg doing that, not the Romney.)

Accusations of tax fraud, FEC and SEC violations, and wrongful death have been flung at Romney, yet every one of them has been found to be without merit. But that doesn't mean the Dems won't keep throwing those kind of accusations his way.

Romney's life is pretty much an open book, unlike our present President who is one of the most secretive persons to ever sit in the Oval Office. We know nothing about him other than what he wants us to know, and that's not much. But to hear it you'd think Romney was hiding all kinds of secrets. It's the standard Democrat tactic of accusing others of doing what they themselves are doing.

I've seen my share of presidential campaigns, but I have to say that this one is probably one of the most divisive and nasty ones I've ever seen. I also expect it to get worse, particularly if the Dems and their 'supporters' (the unions) decide to use their proxies (anarchists, OWS, etc) to up the ante and start with physical threats, voter intimidation, and outright acts of violence. Of course I also expect that if such a thing happens they'll get a pass from AG Jeffrey Holder, much as they did during the 2010 elections.

The Presidential Campaign - Something Is Missing

It wasn't until I was running some errands after work that I finally noticed something that had been just at the edge of conscious thought, bugging me over the past couple of weeks.

It wasn't something that was there that had been rattling around in my subconscious, but rather the lack of something.

What was it?

Obama campaign signs, or rather the total lack of Obama signs anywhere I've been over the past couple of weeks. There are plenty of Romney signs, Ovide LaMontagne (running for the GOP nomination for governor of New Hampshire), Kevin Smith signs (ditto), Maggie Hassan and Maggie Cilley signs (ditto, but for the Democrat nomination) and a spray of campaign signs for those running for offices covering the US Congress, the New Hampshire House, Senate, and Executive Council, to county commissioner. But I haven't seen one Obama sign. NOT. ONE.

I must remind you that I am only talking about a half dozen towns in one county of central New Hampshire (which happens to be heavily Republican), but still I would expect to see a few signs here and there. (I am not counting the various campaign offices, of which there is one in Laconia, I think.) Other than a few deluded souls who believe Obama is their Messiah, writing letters to the editor in our local papers, I haven't come across anyone I know who voted for Obama in 2008 that are planning to vote for him this time.

This is something the polls have failed to show. But then my 'data' is anecdotal and covers a very small portion of one small state. But that doesn't mean it's wrong.

UPDATE 8/24/12: I talked to a number of co-workers about this subject and they've noticed the same thing. One co-worker lives in the Capitol City area (Concord) and he's noticed a dearth of Obama signs. Another lives down near the Massachusetts border and he says he's seen a couple of signs in the city of Nashua, but that's it.