Political Attitudes in America 101 - Time Out #478

A quick shoutout to my bride, Lady Deborah, who celebrates another trip around the sun today. HBD to my closest buddy for 43-plus years of marital bliss! 

     Our Town and the rest of America are on the brink of the 2024 presidential national election, scheduled Tuesday. 

     This election cycle has been pretty incredible, if I do say so, loyal readers in Our Town and far beyond. 

     The days of civil disagreements and calm debates among people, including "friends" seems like long ago. It has been replaced with angry, and in some cases, shouting matches to basically see if one side is able to shout louder than the other side. Many times I feel on-air television personalities make certain their volume knobs are turned all the way forward as they orally deliver their usual message (sometimes bias?) to the listening audience. I have always thought the television commercials are far too loud, but I now believe some on-air announcers are actually louder than the commercials!

     So, pleasant folks, why all this chaos out there?

     I personally lay the principal cause of this train-wreck media environment square at the feet of the Internet.  

     Prior to the evolution of this Internet era, there were plenty of issues, but, I propose, the issues were not blown into the stratosphere, metaphorically speaking, like they have since personal devices have taken over modern civilization. Nowadays, anybody can say anything, any time, about anybody, merely with the push of a button. And, accountability, for the perpetrator (button pusher) is almost nil.  

     As I have said on several occasions in this weekly space, information technology (IT) has come so far, so much, so fast, it has completely out-stripped our human mind's ability to understand/control it. By not truly understanding IT, we have not been able to gain measurable personal control over it in our minds.  Stated again, personal IT management is totally out-of-control, in my humble opinion. 

     Mix this poor/no control over our personal IT situation with a growing distrust in our fellow person, widespread economic disparity, and the worldwide pandemic that almost brought planet earth to a standstill; to quote a familiar phrase, "Houston, we have a problem".  To all these woes, the hopeful politicians tell us via the instant internet, they can solve all our issues, also while yelling their political opponents are BAD folks!   

     Please exercise your American freedom right to vote Tuesday if you have not voted yet. We have a great country, dear people, even with all our hiccups. Our glasses remain well over half full!