Monday, September 5, 2016

Sound bite complexity

There is nothing about the presidential election that is simple. The implications of all the issues are profound. They take discussion, thought, reading, digestion of multiple viewpoints and sifting out of the motives of the various voices.

This is work, and work that takes time. This is about the future of America. This is about the responsibilities of a citizen who enjoys the privileges of America.

For most people this complexity gets condensed into a short sound bite on the evening news. A sentence or two from an  entire speech. A photo op. These little sound and video bites, whether from news or political ads, become the manipulated moments that we build into our images of the candidates.

Sadly, in a frantically paced society full of busy people rushing from experience to experience, a measured and thoughtful approach to voting is rare. Complexity is simply what can be crammed into a sound bite.

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