I was watching the presidential debates and started thinking about how little I was thinking about what the candidates were saying and paying more attention to their rhetoric and body language. You cant really blame me though. We're not hearing anything new from these candidates and there's no way to fact check their claims while they speak. When Obama claims that Romney's tax breaks will fall on the middle class, how can we know at the moment whether or not it is true when Romney claims it's false? It's really all a game. Something that both candidates have to do or else it will seem like they cant stand up to their opposing candidates scrutiny. It reminded me of these hip hop beefs and rap battles. No one really is paying attention to the validity of each rappers' claims or wait for the chance of reconciliation, people just watch to see who can insult the other the best. Similarly in these presidential debates, it's not really about the issues, but about the back and forth that goes on between the candidates.
It makes me wish we could pick our leaders like the first few khalifa's of Islam were chosen. The leaders did not run for office, the most pious among them were chosen. Ideally, this system would bypass all of this unnecessary drama of candidates arguing for why they are the best and increase the likelihood of choosing the most qualified and sincere leader. The only problem is that I don't think it's possible today. There is too much ego and too little sincerity. Democracy isn't bad, I just feel like it's not being implemented in a way that achieves it's purpose.
