That's Not What I Voted For

Why, when believing we have voted for the right presidential candidate, we complain after he, or possibly after the 2008 election, she, is not the resolute leader we thought we were voting for? Well it all comes down to the whole campaign process. Plato, in The Republic suggested “A city whose prospective rulers are least eager to rule must of necessity be most free from civil war, whereas a city with the opposite kind of rulers is governed in the opposite way.” Although an ancient point of view this idea is interesting when we look at the mudslinging, and desperate advertising campaigns bombarding us as we approach the 2008 election. The candidates lower themselves, wasting millions of their own money which could be used to fund charities, aid communities, or go toward the overall welfare of society, but instead that cash is pilfered for a few frivolous images online or on television. All the candidates are doing this, they have to, otherwise their campaign would be a complete failure, but whatever happened to gaining popularity and praise through greatness, not public relations? A candidate should gain followers by having platforms so beneficial and well researched that it would be foolish not to vote for them.
So why don’t we have candidates like that, or if there are such candidates why aren’t they using this method? Its easy to see, when those who want the position not because they are best fit for it, and feel responsible to involve themselves, but because they want the power, prestige, and success for their party, compete against those who are actually the best fit. The just practices of the fit are useless against unjust mudslinging, and PR campaigns of those unfit.
So what’s the solution? Who in their right mind would read an article whining about the woes of the world without supplying an answer? Well a plausible answer would be to completely prohibit candidate advertising campaigns. This may sound like an embargo on the candidates freedom of speech and expression, however these are the people trying to represent us as a nation, we shouldn’t care how talented their marketing departments are, we should only care what they have to say when put to the test in debates and in public speeches, where one can not hide, or edit out mistakes. Then we would be voting for candidates who we understand to be the best. In the world of international relations a leader can not go back and undo, erase, or hide their mistakes, one slip of the tongue, one misinterpreted gesture could set off massive hostility, or make worse an already tense situation. No commercial can demonstrate a candidate’s ability to handle these situations. So when November rolls around next year, don’t look to the commercials to find your candidate, watch the debates, public speeches, and decide for yourself, instead of letting the media decide for you.