WHAT MATTERS
(Or Why I Did Not Watch The Debates)

“Knowledge is power.”

~ Francis Bacon

“Tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”

~ Malcolm X

Voting in the United States, almost like any other country in the world, is serious business. Democracy and the right to select leadership are part of the ideals this country was built upon. It is the very essence of our foundation and should not be taken lightly.

So while the Presidential debates are supposed to help people decide who to vote for, I find them a waste of time. With our advanced resources, why do we have such a hard time selecting a leader? If folks would simply listen, read a bit, and just pay attention, they could decide without spending 360 minutes of their time (4 debates) watching 4 grown men argue as if they were on a playground. And by the way, that’s 6 hours. That’s almost a whole day’s work, glued to a television, radio, computer (livestream), etc.; and it’s time one can never get back. Besides, can 90 minutes, really tell you what you need to know about a person and their qualifications to run one of the most powerful nations on Earth?

What I also find unsettling, is how Americans love putting all their business in the street. It is beyond ridiculous. The rest of the world probably figures the average American to be greedy, wasteful, overzealous, and arrogant. Proof positive is in our reality shows, sports worship (guilty, I am), senseless violence, and the 3-ring circus masquerading as the electoral process. Add the debate posturing, jesting, facial expressions, indignant-remarks-triggered scoffs, and other semi-buffoonery and the United States looks ignorant.

Moreover, why do we vote for someone and then tear them down when they cannot fix their inherited mess overnight? Surely, we understand we are electing a human who has to decide which problems to take on first; we are not hiring a magician for “entertainment purposes only.”

Furthermore, is it smart to share so much of our military strategies and foreign policies during the debates? It is one thing to say to another country, “We know that you don’t like us; and we want you to know that we know you don’t like us…!” Yet quite another to say, “If I’m elected, I’m going to bust a cap in that country’s ass!”  As a member of our military, I very much want to be informed of my boss’ thoughts. However, I do not think the rest of the world needs to know. But that’s just me.

With all the pomp and circumstance of the DNC, RNC and the debates, the question burning in my soul was, “who is campaigning for the misfortunate, the downtrodden, or those who cannot speak for themselves?” Because at the end of the day, the following issues still prevail:

1.      Rampant bullying, obesity, dysfunction and bloodshed amongst our young people, specifically, in Chicago.

2.      Children who cannot read or write on their grade level. Bottom line, our education system stinks!

3.      Homeless and hungry Americans, most of them Veterans of our Armed Forces. We probably could have fed 10,000 families for a year with the money spent for both the DNC and RNC.

4.      Military personnel are still dying in Afghanistan and Iraq.

5.      No cure for cancer.

Americans get so caught up in the process that they forget what actually matters. We also fail to recall that after the laws of the land prevail, we must support the winner. Added to that, we must take ownership as citizens of our nation. Volunteer, mentor, and stop waiting for someone else to step up if you are able to do something to make this land a better land (cue the Pointers Sisters, “Yes We Can Can”).

And yes, I do hope my guy wins. He’s faced a lot of adversities, involuntarily became very unpopular via his tough choices, and shown great courage. He remains a gentleman who has had to bite his tongue numerous times when the average person would have said, “Your Mama,” followed by, “Boys, handle my light work!”

What exactly, did I do instead of watching the debates? Spent about 2.5 hours in the gym (collectively), started a new Pearl Cleage book, messed around on Facebook a bit, wrote and checked out 2 movies I’d been itching to watch…

…and yes, I have a ways to go before I truly understand, “what matters,” too.