I don’t think I really became that cognitive about presidential elections until 2004, when it was John Kerry versus George W. Bush. I never really cared, nor do I really have that much care today about politicians, but it’s safe to say that when I turned 18 in 2000, I was still in a state of not giving a shit about the world, and didn’t bother voting then.
I didn’t vote in 2004 when it was John Kerry versus George W. Bush, because I drug my feet after moving down to Atlanta and didn’t bother registering to vote in the state of Georgia. I didn’t vote in 2008 when it was Barack Obama versus Sarah PalinJohn McCain, because I was just plain negligent, and I was working freelance, and honestly the two hours of wages I would have lost out on to take time to vote were more important to me than voting in a state that would win red pretty much no matter what.
Maybe this year will be the first year that I actually vote, since I’m actually registered to vote in the state of Georgia now, after living here for nine years, I have a full-time job where now I’m looking to shave hours off the clock wherever I can, and Jen and I carpool to work, so if she decides to vote, then I’ll be voting as well. Whom I’d vote for, I’m still kind of undecided on, but even if I did know, I wouldn’t make it public, because frankly there’s real no point.
Despite the fact that I hadn’t voted in any of the last three elections I’d been eligible to have voted in, I haven’t been ambivalent to the behaviors of people all around me when it comes to politics. Maybe it’s been me growing up and opening my eyes to it, or perhaps it’s the collective aging and adaptation of the times. Probably a combination of both frankly, but opposing political views seem to have become more fervent, resentful, and more volatile over the passing of the last twelve years.
This has been no more prevalent anywhere than on peoples’ cars. That’s right, bumper stickers. Vehicles have become the perfect well, vehicles, for people to passive-aggressively display the political stance without actually having to engage another human being in what would ultimately lead to a heated discussion, whether or not they were in agreement or disagreement. Before an election, bumper stickers have been the seemingly most used platform to push and display someone’s agenda. And after an election, bumper stickers became the platform in which supporters of the winner would gloat over “their” victory, and where those who oppose would slap bumper stickers of disapproval for the next four-to-eight years.
I didn’t vote in 2000, but I was still well aware of who the candidates were, because cars all around Virginia wore either “BUSH/CHENEY” or “GORE/LIEBERMAN” stickers on them. But that was really it; after the election, peoples’ cars either still had Bush/Cheney on it, and those who leaned to the left quietly removed their Al Gore stickers.
In 2004, it was more of the same; BUSH/CHENEY versus KERRY/EDWARDS. Being the font savant I am/was, I remember like it was yesterday, the fact that Bush’s stickers were in all caps like a militant luddite sitting at a computer for the first time, screaming, while John Kerry’s stickers were more relaxed, and sophisticated looking with a serif font. No matter, we all know what happened, and Bush won his second term. But this apparently was the year that I noticed that where there were no acceptant winners or losers. Proud Bush supporters naturally kept their stickers on their cars, but this was when I noticed that people started putting those “W – THE PRESIDENT” black stickers on their cars. It kind of came off as arrogant and gloating in my opinion, as if it were like a sticky piece of vinyl saying “fuck you, my guy is the winner.” But the thing is that those who opposed Bush didn’t take it laying down either, and it wasn’t long before F THE PRESDIENT spoof stickers, and other anti-Bush propaganda stickers seemed to emerge.
Somewhere along the line, I’m guessing around this time, presidential elections stopped being about people really caring about the state of the country, and having legitimate concerns about the world. It’s turned more into a MY GUY, NOT YOUR GUY mentality, and I really question the basis of peoples’ decisions when making their votes. Yes, this is presumptuous of me to say, but it’s how I feel, silly as it sounds. But it really does feel like people care more about their choice “winning,” versus someone else’s. It’s kind of a lot like a sports mentality; when the Super Bowl comes around, you have fans of the Patriots, and you have fans of the Giants. And lots of people who simply don’t care. But there are large contingents of each teams’ fanbase that aren’t rooting so much for their team’s victory because it would make them happy, but so that they could gloat and rub it into the faces of the losing side.
2008 was the most fascinating year, with the long and short of it being because the fact that Barack Obama is a black man. Racist America emerged its ugly head during this time, and propaganda may as well have had stickers just saying “THE BLACK GUY” or “THE WHITE GUY.” From an artistic standpoint, Obama blew McCain away with his litany of stickers and propaganda that promised changes and hope, and all these other false promises, while McCain went with the tried and true boring vanilla rectangular stickers.
But 2008 wasn’t really so much the election where people supported whom they preferred, it seemed so much more like people slandered whom they didn’t like. It’s like people didn’t care if McCain won, as long as the black guy didn’t get in office, and it was okay if Obama won as long as Sarah Palin didn’t get to occupy the White House. After the election, there was hardly any delay with the anti-Obama propaganda, and to this day and the upcoming 2012 election, there’s way more anti-Obama messages out there than there is any actual alternative option.
I touched on this not long ago, when I saw a truck with an anti-Obama sticker on it, but the thing is that is people don’t like Obama, who would they rather have? It’s like the dilemma of having rats, and releasing snakes into your home to get rid of them all; the immediate solution is nice, but the long term repercussions of the action might not always have been well thought of.
Honestly, off the top of my head, I don’t know who Mitt Romney’s running mate is. Seriously. But I can recollect at least four different anti-Obama sticker designs I’ve seen on the road over the last few months. To a large part of America, I’m pretty sure would rather vote for Zombie Adolf Hitler and reinstate the extermination of Jews, homosexuals and minorities if it meant getting Barack Obama out of office.
Either way, I think this upcoming election is kind of a wash anyway. I think Mitt Romney is a typical goon politician, with a long history of shady fund-raising, screwing the little guy, and hypocrisy, while Barack Obama has championed all sorts of change and optimistic rhetoric, but the fact of the matter is that life sure as shit doesn’t feel any better than it did before Obama got into office; gas prices are still retarded high, my land value is a joke, and I still know way too many talented and educated people suffering joblessness and dwindling hope.
Putting it that way, I guess championing for the winning side so that you can gloat seems about the only thing left in these elections, after all. Ain’t that some shit? Talk about talking yourself towards a conclusion.
