I do not claim to be any kind of expert on politics. Nothing is absolute. But one thing I have learned that I am absolutely certain of is how ugly things are and where they have progressed to today.
I’m not even referring to the ugliness of those involved in the political arena themselves. I am talking about US as the voters or potential voters.
Something similar may have happened previously, but I will start with Barack Obama. There were questions about his citizenship. So he produced his birth certificate. Then Donald Trump was expected to show his tax returns. Now, people want Bernie Sanders to show his medical records, as he has produced letters from medical professionals.
My disclaimer to this is that that is not about endorsing anyone. If your intent is to make this about supporting any one person, then you are totally missing the point.
I get it that promises were made. Other candidates did this or that. But the bottom line is that none of these are required to be shown to the American public. Period. Certain information needs to be verified here or there, but there is positively no requirement that everyone has to see this information.
Someone just threw out there that Obama was actually born in Kenya. Trump promised to show his tax returns. Sanders promised to show his medical records.
Of course, the American people never disappoint. As what usually happens, people became ugly and just ran with everything. No one cared about Obama’s citizenship before then. Tax returns by past presidents were never discussed, at least not to my knowledge. And medical records are only a thing now because of Sanders being 78 years old.
How did we get here? Again, I am no expert. But when something is not required, my belief is that it does not have to be done, nor should people be judged for not doing it. End of story. If you were not required to follow the speed limit on the road, is it fair to judge you if you don’t? If you are not required to work on a specific day, would it be fair to be berated when you don’t show up?
Once more…a birth certificate does not have to be made public for someone to be president. Yet, folks demanded it. Same for the tax returns and medical records. Now it is less about the quality of the specific individual and more about whatever aspect someone wants to throw out there.
Where does it stop?
Some random fool says Obama wasn’t born here. And as those against him rushed to believe it and ran with it. Trump and Sanders made promises, but even without those promises, they are under no obligation to show tax returns or medical records just because you want them to. If they are guilty of anything, it’s opening their big mouths and making promises they were not planning to keep. I know how shocking it is that a politician broke a promise, but before those promises were made, not a single person one of us was thinking about it without someone else having to bring it up first. Same with the birth certificate. That was not a concern until the conspiracy of him not being born here came out.
Elizabeth Warren showed her medical records. Cool. She was not required to do that. So this is why it became a “requirement” for Sanders to show his, as many people have said. But let’s just say that someone throws out there than Elizabeth has a prominent history of breast cancer in her family. And as the basement dwellers do, they concoct this immense conspiracy that will have people believing she is right around the corner from getting it herself and now she “has to prove she will not develop” it. In a perfect, mature world, Sanders supporters would say that has nothing to do with anything and dismiss the silliness.
However, we know this world isn’t perfect. The United States damn sure isn’t.
Those who do not like Elizabeth Warren will grab this and run like Barry Sanders trying to get to the end zone. Doesn’t matter whether or not it makes sense or is required. It’s another “strike” against her.
And that’s what politics is now. MUCH less about what your choice of candidate can do and WAY MORE about what the other one cannot. The American people spend more time bashing the candidates they don’t like rather than uplifting the ones they do.
But as I mentioned above; those aspects that were and are not required became “required” by the American public. So what’s next?
Let’s say that one candidate is believed to be afraid of heights, and the other one, the one you support, is not, and proved it by…I don’t know…skydiving or something crazy like that a thousand years ago. Will we then demand that the first candidate prove they are not afraid of heights and badger them until they do, berating them and saying that they would be “unfit to lead the country” because they “can’t even handle being in the air”?
Sounds silly, right? Well hold on just as second…
There have been a number of political candidates in our history who have been divorced. MANY times, especially when it comes to divorced female candidates, I have heard some version of the statement, “WELL IF THEY CAN’T EVEN KEEP THEIR FAMILIES TOGETHER, HOW CAN THEY RUN THE _____________?” (insert area in which they are running, such as the city, state, district, etc.)
It has either been this, or if her children have had some trouble with the law. Again, the question is, how can she be productive as a politician when that represents her family life?
This is plain stupid. So if a woman divorces a man because he has abused her, that means she is incapable of success as a politician? How is that her fault? If she has children who cut up (as just about damn ALL of us with children do), that means she could not do her job effectively? Imagine none of us ever being able to get jobs strictly based on how our children behave. I have never understood how people even put these together with how she is able to do her job. Then again, this is women we are talking about. Speaking of the hypothetical abuse, women are wrong when they leave and they are wrong when they stay. So they cannot win either way. Just look at Hillary Clinton. She chooses to ride it out with Bill. But if she decided to leave him, tell me that people would not be saying that about her and how she “couldn’t keep it together” with him.
And let’s face it, since we live in such a “keep it 100” society. When Obama finally did show his birth certificate, did that change any of your minds about him? Would you think differently about Trump if he finally shows his tax returns? What about Sanders and his medical records?
No.
So let’s stop pretending that these aspects are the only issues you have with certain individuals. Again, this is not about trying to tell people who to support. But even upon these candidates showing what you want them to show, all because someone else did it, would you really backtrack your stance(s) on them?
No. You wouldn’t.
Not to mention, back to those who spend all their waking moments in Mom’s basements. Let’s say that even these individuals do show this stuff. Then the trolls start passing around that documents have been “altered” in this way or that way, or that something was photoshopped to look like something different.
How easily would you believe that to be true about the candidate you don’t support?
Before you answer, keep in mind that people are still sharing false information on social media without so much as verifying it, all because it places the candidate they do not support in a negative light, helping their candidate’s cause. I cannot tell you how many times I see random words on a meme or colored background and I have to tell people that what is there was totally false. Not that I should have to, because after all, there was nothing to verify the validity of what was said anyway.
Especially with a president now who calls everything against him “fake news.” People would simply believe anything if it is convenient.
A damn shame. We all have smartphones that have access to a wealth of information, yet people are still falling for two-bit garbage that some yutz in his mother’s basement throws together.
Then again, they are called smart “phones.” Way too often, that applies to the phone itself rather than the person using it.
People's Court 