The Political Roller Coaster

Been watching the political pundits dissecting the latest moves in the very complicated political process we have here in the United States. I was reminded that I began this series of political blogs to attempt to explain the politics in America to my blogland friends in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada. And in the process I have learned more than I think on retrospect I wanted to know.

I have discovered for instance that there is nothing democratic about the primary process. There are attempts on the part of both parties to make it look more democratic but it really has not gone that far from the old smoked filled rooms of the 1800's except that they are not allowed to smoke anymore.

The puppeteers in the back rooms are almost visible in the Republican campaign. McCain starts using Bush's words and phrases and he comes from behind, Romney challenges with non-Bush policies and gets asked to step out of the race if he wants to position himself with the party in 2012. I even wonder if Huckabee is being asked to stay in and fight to make it look like the registered Republicans might have once had a choice . And as McCain heads to Texas to be endorsed by the senior Bush as the anointed successor you wonder why they even bothered to put on the show. And didn't the pundits say just a few months ago that being endorsed by any Bush would be the kiss of death?

Not meaning to pick on the Republicans only because I doubt there is any more democracy in the Democratic primary process though they made a more convincing show of things. But it is fairly clear they have lost control. Right about now they were suppose to be crowning another Clinton but the people actually got out and voted. Democrats across the nation are turning out for primaries and caucuses and are joined where allowed by independents. Hilary is clearly pissed. Someone in some room at some time told her she was a shoe in and now some of the rats (the super delegates) are fleeing the ship.

All this reminds me of standing in line to ride a roller coaster. My sister and I used to be junkies. You get off the roller coaster and immediately rush around to get in line again. The ride is under five minutes and the line can be that or 10 times that. You get more time to study the line than the ride. Everyone starts out really giddy. Lots of chatter and laughter and kidding around in line. And the closer you get to the front the quieter it gets.

If you have taken the ride before you know what is coming. You know you survived. You liked it well enough you are here again. And yet . . . there is this sense of anxiety. Is this the time the cars jump the track? The track collapses under the weight of too many trips by too many people? The drive mechanism jams and you are left suspended upside down in one of the loops.

Will the whole political process come to a bone shattering halt in mid loop? Have the men behind the scenes lost control and will they try to regain it. Or has something unique happened for once in my lifetime and the people will actually get a say in how it goes.

None of the Above

In college I had this marvelous Sociology professor. After taking Sociology 101 from him I decided to get a minor in the subject.

His freshman level 101 class was in the major lecture hall which held 600 plus students, so we did not have essay exams but multiple choice. He wrote some of the trickiest multiple choice tests I ever took. There were seldom less than five choices and the instructions said that sometimes two choices would be correct.

Choice E was frequently, but not always, None of the Above. It became somewhat of a rallying call among Varley's students. Any time you heard the phrase on campus you knew they had taken a course from the man. D was often all the above but it just did not have the ring of None of the Above.

Watching the current political contests here in the United States I find myself wanting to scream at the political pundits on television - None of the above! I like it. We should put it on the ballot.

For President

• John McCain - Republican
• Hilary R. Clinton - Democrat
• Mayor Bloomberg - Independent
• None of the above

If no one candidate captures 33% of the vote or more or if None of the above has the highest number of votes the election is re-run. And why stop at President with this proposal? Start on the state level. And lets start in the primaries. It would give fair warning to all parties that they just have not captured our hearts and minds; dig deeper.

And just think of the fun when the pollsters call. No longer do you have to meekly reply that you are undecided (and let's face it if they were running a great slate of candidates would you be undecided). Just yell: NONE OF THE ABOVE.

The talking heads on television would be dismayed. "Well, Lou, it appears that the winner of the Iowa caucus will be None of the Above. What do you think that means for the future of the political process here in America?"

That it is broken and we want it fixed. Candidates and their future votes and vetoes should not be open for purchase by the big money interests in this country. And with None of the Above us little insignificant voters, the backbone of the representative republic, can take back our country.

Let's not wait until they get the message. We have write in votes. Write in None of the Above. Tell the pollsters, None of the Above. E-mail the news media with your choice of None of the Above. Why should we have to settle on the least obnoxious candidate for the leader of the less-than-free world? Just say None of the Above.