Presidential Campaign 2016 - Wake Me Up in 14 Months

With GOP and DEM clowns tripping over each other to create headlines that will get them some media coverage, I am ignoring all political coverage until the herds are thinned.

Other than knowing some names, I can't tell you what a single candidate's position is on an issue at the moment. Frankly, their position doesn't really matter since the vast majority of them will adjust their stance to the middle of the road to win votes if they are lucky enough to actually still be in the conversation once the race actually begins. Of course, the far right Bible beaters and the far left radicals will cater to their fringe elements and go down with the ship.

The whole campaign process is sickeningly too long and irrelevant. It exists largely to give the media something to fill there ad and news space while candidates rake in billion dollar war chests and so a number of pretenders have an opportunity to build exposure for some future endeavor, book deal, or speaker's fees.

If I see a piece in the paper about a political candidate, I skip right over it. I change the channel as soon as a story starts about this person or that person declaring they are running for office. I will not watch a single minute of "candidate debates" or forums until we are down to a single candidate for each party and independents' campaign. You may think that approach is willfully being uniformed but I believe nothing meaningful is coming out of the mouths of candidates or the media until they get down to serious brawlers.

Primaries and caucuses have become irrelevant. Listening tours are nothing more than mega fundraising scams. Given the speed with which news travels these days and the power of the Internet, voters can be informed, the media can fully investigate and the entire presidential campaign process could be shrunk to three months. Moreover, the speed with which the state of the world, our nation and the economy change, the specifics of a candidate's views about events of today will have almost no relevance in 18 months.

But an abbreviated campaign period would cost the major networks and their local stations hundreds of millions of dollars in ad revenue, the lobbyists and influence peddlers would have to operate in a shrunken window of payoffs and candidates wouldn't be able to amass bank accounts that assure them of funds for years to come. Hotels would lose bookings that state conventions generate, sign and banner makers would have fewer orders, etc., etc. None of those parties are willing to do what is best for America at their own expense, which is why the election process isn't going to change.

Just so you don't think I am apathetic, I have already made some very firm decisions about whom I will not vote under any circumstances. I will never cast a vote for a Bush or a Clinton. Those two families should not have the right to rule this nation for the better part of three decades, which is what it would amount to if either is elected. The other "nonstarter" name for me is the pathetic clown with orange hair, Trump. Hopefully, by the time this farce of a lengthy campaign process winds down, a worthy candidate from either, or hopefully, no party will emerge. Wake me up then.

Super Bowl Ads Are Like America's Presidential Elections

With no effort on my part other than a mouse click, I've seen "leaked" Super Bowl ads from six different advertisers via FaceBook. Rest assured, none of these are leaked but rather released with the hope they'll get extra exposure to amortize the outrageous expense of producing and airing them. Sadly, not even the cutesy Budweiser or dramatic domestic violence spots moved me. Ads that merely make me say "Aw" or reinforce what I already know to be despicable conditions but don't actively entice me to DO something are a waste of money. More on this later.

It dawned on me, Super Bowl ads, and the Super Bowl itself are akin to America's presidential election process. 1. The far too long lead up is just a bunch of overwrought theater that serves little purpose other generating billions of dollars in ad sales. 2. The main characters are almost indistinguishable from one another and of little interest except to a small pocket of supporters. 3. The event itself is anticlimactic despite all the hoopla and drama the media tries to invent. 4. Two weeks after the event it is all but forgotten by most people. 4. The public participates because it has come to believe the experience that revolve around the concept of parties is a form of patriotic obligation. 5. The next morning, most people feel noting but a nagging headache and regret. 6. Regardless of who wins, the outcome has little or no meaning in the lives of 99.9% of Americans.

I have to return to the topic of a specific ad. Slapping a web address at the end doesn't move me to action. In the case of the domestic violence ad, donated by the NFL, I found it to be nothing more than gratuitous, exploitative, lip service. FYI, NFL, the public is already aware that domestic violence is an issue. Your members have given us repeated examples. Pat yourself on the back for "raising awareness" of a critical issue if you like, but most of us would prefer to give you a swift kick in the ass for your attitude and handling of the topic.

I'll be skipping the game. What ads I haven't seen will be available on Monday. Let's hope they actually attempt sell something and give me valid reason to consider buying but I predict it will feel like any other Nov. 5th.