What have you learned form this campaign
Read the attached article that adddresses a couple of people's questions. As I read this I wondered about what I had learned from this campaign. Here is my take on election 2008.
2008 Campaign Season
The system is set up to perpetuate the 2 party system...and it is only getting worse. 3rd parties today can't compete with a campaign seaon that gets under way the better part of 2 years before the election date. With the amount of money raised, spent and the effect that campaign spending has on the success of candidates, 3rd parties must feel like Sisyphus (look it up if you don't know the reference). The cost to win elections is tremendous and if you only have limited funds you are left to run ads a few weeks before the election. Good Luck 3rd Parties!
APLGer's: Your task, should you choose to accept it, write a brief summary about 1 thing this campaign season has taught you. Blog early so as you can be the first to report on....
You have until the moment the polls open in Rochester for the General Election to post your entry.
Mr. Thompson
posted by erdecker @ 7:40 PM
26 comments
26 Comments:
One thing this years Campaign season has taught me is that the candidates are actually closer on their thoughts than they would like to be. The reason i say this is because during debates they try to bring the moderates onto their side, but in order to do so, they have to prove that they are closer to the center then to the left or right. I have a slight problem with that thought. The problem is how do we know we can trust them? If they lean towards the middle just so we will like them, is that being honest? The candidates aren't being fair to the voters if they are faking what side they are on, or if they are on this side for one subject but on the other side for a different subject. I never noticed that this was a technique the candidates used to get voters. It takes away that line, the line that helps them stay apart. The
This campaign... I suppose it has taught me that negative adds can be avoided to an extent.. in comparison to the Bush Kerry election anyway. But I find myself very biased. I look to one side and see exactly what I'm looking for and see the other side as useless. But even though it's not necessarily about the campaign itself.... I believe that it's taught me that politics are important and still alive in this country. And that you maybe can get things done with enough passion. But then, I come off as rather idealistic now don't I?
What I've learned from this Campaign year, especially this one, has to go with the whole money and funds thing as well. But what I've learned is that for most of the campaign trail it's mostly just wasting the money raised, because when I look at it, the money spent on advertising doesn't do much for getting more votes, and then there is the money that was spent for wrong reasons. Like that Palin issue and buying clothes. All that money could have been used for things such as getting the economy out of debt or something- charities, etc. So I've pretty much learned that campaign money is often used not how it should be for the candidates, and that to much is centered around the things that they could do if they had more fund- because of the huge effect that the media have on the voters.
Oh I have also learned that the candidates mostly stick to the traditional campaigning strategies, they don't really try anything new and outlandish to really get the attention and support of people. They stick to the commercials, fliers, and debates, etc. They should get out into the communities more- help with service projects to show that they really care, by taking time from there busy schedules, or something more.
This year's campaign has taught me that presidential candidates spend about two years in a grueling and tiresome campaign around the United States to gain electoral votes; this long campaign is one of the main reasons why people shy away from running for president. Most people don't want to spend two full years of their life campaigning for president.
From this 2008 election I have learned that the media plays a huge role in the campaign process. Instead of educating themselves on their own, it seems that many Americans choose to let a newscaster on TV do the talking, and this report could come off as a little biased and possibly sway some voters' decision making processes. Also, the campaign process as we know it today would be virtually impossible without television coverage, because of the wide range of campaign events spread across the entire U.S.
Never before had I known of any such thing as a 3rd party; America just has Republicans and Democrats, of course.
Also, I hadn't realized the importance, moreso necessity, of a financially supported campaign. As our textbook pointed out, past election successes have strongly hinged on media coverage, therefore, money. I had just never realized it.
The one thing I have learned about the 2008 election is that just because someone says I'm liberal or conservative, Democratic, or Republican, does not mean that their beliefs follow said party EXACTLY. I always thought that once you picked a party you just voted for whatever candidate was running for presidancy from your party. After taking the Liberal vs. Conservative test I also learned that the majority of young people tend to be in the middle, with a few to the left and right wings. And as someone else said, I was completely unaware of third parties. I thought Independant was the only third party, and even then I was sorely misinformed on a what exactly it meant to be "independant". Being a first time voter scares me, but I guess I'm more prepared now, it's scary to think who I'd vote for if I hadn't had this class...
During the 2008 campaign, I have learned that....
Well. I have learned that I get very uncomfortable when people start discussing the other party, and I have no way to back up my own views. I was recently in a situation in which the majority of the room was strongly pro-McCain. In fact, everybody except for me was pro-McCain. They started spitting out facts on why Obama is not the good candidate. I wanted to say something, but... Lizi hasn't been staying up-to date on her political controversy. I don't like feeling dumb!!!
[STEPHEN HANDLON]
One thing the 2008 campaign has taught me is how much religious identity still matters in relation to American political candidates. 10% of American voters STILL believe that Obama is a Muslim and a quarter claim they aren’t sure. The controversy over Obama possibly belonging to the Muslim faith suggests that many Americans think there is something fundamentally wrong with being Arab or Muslim that would disqualify someone from running for president. A Gallup Polls supports this claim, showing 38% of Americans would not vote for a qualified Muslim candidate on that basis alone. Obviously, I knew before the 2008 presidential campaign that prejudice existed in America. However, the campaign surprised me by revealing how many Americans pose a sort of religious litmus test on political candidates.
This 2008 campaign season has opened my eyes to a lot of different things but none more than during debates people do not like to talk out of their comfort zones. I always thought that candidates went into great detail on every single topic thrown at them, but this year I had the privilege of watching some parts of the debates and I realized how much they stick with one topic. For example, McCain likes to talk about his life as a P.O.W., Palin likes to discuss the topic of alternative energy and oil, and Obama likes to preach to the middle class. No matter what the topic is it can be twisted back into their comfort zone. At first I frowned upon it but then realized that I tend to do that once in a while too. The people don't want to hear someone talk about something they don't know anything about.
[Suzy Kent]
One thing that I have learned from this year's campaign season is that parties/campaigns are sneaky in how they pick out something from the opponent, place it in commercial, and point out the negative side of it to boost themselves as the 'good guy'. I have seen at least three examples. One is a misuse of a video clip with audio/sound of Al Franken during one of his speeches. The other example is a misuse of a sound/audio clip of Joe Biden on how Obama would be challenged in the 'Oval Office'. Another example is a commercial stating that the only person(senator) that didn't vote to give the senators in Congress a 'pay-raise' was Al Franken, but as my Dad said 'Franken hasn't been in Congress so he hasn't even had the chance to vote, so of course he would be the only one that didn't vote on the 'pay-raise'.'
With the technology available today it's easier to manipulate the 'words' of opponents to put 'yourself' in the lime-light of being 'good'.
One thing I learned, or "found out" is some people are "not smart." They will believe almost anything they are told. The best example I can come up with is the woman who thought Obama was an Arab. Also the negative ads. They must obviously be working to some extent or they would not air them. Some of the things in the ads are so outragously "off" or out of context its funny. So I learned that people have a hard time thinking independently and separating fact from fiction.
One thing I learned from this presidential campaign....
The biggest thing would probably be that it seems like dabates are purely aesthetic, with no real educational value. All they do is enable a candidate to skirt around questions they dont like while the candidates end up reapeating the same thing over and over. It also gives the candidates a chance to beat up on eachother some more
Danielle Humphrey
I can't believe how bad the mudslingning gets! I'm suprised to learn that politicians may be as corrupt as they are made out to be...is it just me, or were the campaign ads less aggressive last time around??? It's hard to accept that Obama or McCain is going t sway voters because of some false accusation put into a commercial. It just goes to show the TV's role in today's society, and how influential it is.
This campaign has taught me that many people with voting eligibality rely to heavily on the public media to inform them of issues. They're not trying to find out about them on their own. I have also learned that sometimes people are hesitant to vote based on the candidates being presented, either that or some will just go for an outrageous write in. People always get on the subject that it is our right and responsibility to vote and if we choose not to then we have no right to complain. But then what are we to do when people don't like the choices? I've talked to a lot of people who are going to be voting on tuesday and with most of the ones I've talked to they don't like Obama or McCain but then if they were to vote for a 3rd party candidate realistically what good would that do? So they're stuck because either way it goes thay won't like who wins, I understand that that's been a problem for some in the past, but I do believe that this is a time when many are feeling that way. Let me say I'm gled I'm still 17 for this election because if I could vote, I honestly don't know who I'd vote for.
(Sarah Anderson)
One thing the 2008 Presidential Campaign has tought me was the behind the scenes cost of everything.Paying for the ads are very expensive and it's amazing how much money a canidate can raise, like Obama breaking the recored. Also, considering I've been paying for attention to everything this year since I can vote, I have really noticed how many ads there actually are. It seems that they are now more and more and never stop showing up. Everytime I see an ad, by the end of it I am always sayin to myself, " Wow, all that mudslinging for a million bucks, not worth it." The years before, I would just change the channel and look for something better because I really didn't care.
This campaign has taught me that the more coverage a party gets, whether it be TV adds or radio adds, the more people will know about your party, thus more people are more likely to vote for that party. Obama fits into this perfectly. He has way more adds and coverage than McCain has, thus he (Obama) is more popular to the people. Obama's views get out to the public more than McCain's.
[Michaela Antolak
i have learned that even though i thought my views were more liberal they are slightly more conservative on the bigger issues, i also learned the difference between liberal and conservative, having it more defined and clear to me.
Thanks to the 2008 campaign I found out that i actually care about politics! Normally I will discuss issues or voice my opinions on certain things but I have never sided with a candidate. I learned that doing that is sooo hard to do since they are both so close to the middle, not necessarily left or right sided. I have always known that the candidate's apperance plays a roll but I never noticed how much of an issue it was for me until this season (watching McCain on tv I HATE IT!) I just wish i was 18 so i could vote.
This year the thing I have learned is that republicans and democrats aren't all that different. I learned that sometimes liberals can listen to McCain speak on certain subjects and say to themselves 'I agree' and conservatives can do the same when Obama is speaking. The other thing I learned is that people usually are not completely democratic/liberal or republican/conservative.
One thing I have learned from this campaign is that more than ever candidates are trying to raise more money than their opponent. Yes, it's been that way for years but it seemed like it started a lot earlier this election and a lot more money is being raised.
One thing I learned from this campaign season is that no one is actually purely liberal or purely conservative. There are many topics that involve different opinions that could be either liberal or conservative, and not everyone has the same views of a certain party for all of these topics. For example I lean more towards the liberal side of the scale but i still have some very conservative views on certain topics.
I have learned a lot about myself and others during this campaign season ^^ Now that I'm more aware of this year's political process more than any year, my opinion as changed, or at least i had to think about them over again. It has also made me think more broadly about the differences between each party’s ideas. I have learned soo much this year. I wonder if i have to list them all. But i will go on. -__-" Remember we learned about rhetoric devices? Or got more deeper into that? I've also seen in the campaign how that's becoming an art. Canidates are getting better and better at it, that it's almost natural to them. But the biggiest thing I've ever learned is how complicated things are. Ulimately, we all want the same thing--a good environment for our children as well as education, a well run economy, etc. The only thing that really gets in the way our different amounts of dedication to ensure this. (hard to explain) Basically, our similarities outweigh our differences. I think that's the jist of what i learned in this years campaign (: including what i've read in the text book.
oh i guess it's only ONE thing. -__-" oops. i guess i didn't read the directions quite clearly. oh well. x)
what i learned from the 2008 campaign is that a lot of people vote shallow. What i mean by this is that half of the people i have seen who will vote for Obama simply are voting because he's black. Race should not be a deciding factor at all. Also, I have found that money really decides everything. I'm late in posting this so I've already voted and i did not realize how many people were actually on the balet. Then all the small time people on the ballet like section 30 leaders or whatever i haven't ever heard of. Also, because this is the first year i got to vote, i tried to pay much more attention to what their policies were. its been fun to say the least.
What I learned during this campaign is that candidates don't really do anything themselves, and that they seem to change their very views depending on the time of the election, whether they're competing among their party or in the final election. It almost seems to me like candidates will say whatever they have to as long as they get elected. What do they really stand for, I begin to wonder. When they get into the presidency do they stay closer between party lines on policy or do they go back to where they started? The election seems more fake to me, because theres so much going on below the surface.
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