Carla Bradley
The Signal
Backstabbing, manipulation, fakeness, empty promises and world peace all commonplace in two forms of popular entertainment: beauty pageants and political campaigns.
In politics, as in beauty pageants, it’s all about being able to answer the now-trite million dollar question about changing the world. However, politics and beauty pageants have moved away from their true meaning, being a positive representative of “the people” – and instead are focused on finding the perfect sound bite.
I first discovered the similarities between politics and beauty pageants when I ran for senior class president in 2007 at Clear Lake High School. Ultimately, it came down to how pretty, popular and rich a candidate was. Enlisting a friend to dance “The Macarena” with me in a Johnny Depp/Willy Wonka outfit only earned me 20 votes from approximately 700 likely voters.
Maybe the students did not quite understand the importance of ‘rocking the vote’ just yet. In the Vote 2010 election, it would be great to have the option to vote for a real hero, like Harry Potter for the Texas gubernatorial race. It would be great if the forces of good versus evil were as transparent as the battle between Harry vs. Voldemort.
Gubernatorial candidates Rick Perry and Bill White do get credit for starting and engaging in ludicrous mudslinging. They seem to think this tactic will help them win over voters for the November elections by digging up as much of one another’s past deeds as possible. Instead of spending money on attack ads, they should consider using it to help non-profit organizations such as food banks or Habitat for Humanity. Let’s face it, the economy stinks and there are people still living in FEMA trailers needing a real place to call home, but I digress.
Again, too much focus is being placed on harming the opposition for personal gain. Both Perry and White should have learned a lesson from the dirtiest gubernatorial race in Texas history between former Texas Gov. Ann Richards and Clayton Williams. Williams should have been a shoe-in as a wealthy Republican “John Wayne” type, but his ungentlemanly mudslinging tactics turned voters off and cost him the election.
If running for class president or watching 2007 Miss Teen South Carolina have taught me anything, it’s that it is probably better for candidates to play nice with their colleagues so they won’t be a target for scandal and invest in a map so that they don’t end up calling the country the United States has been fighting with since 2001 “the Iraq.”
In the end, when heroes resort to evil-doing to win, they become a part of what they hoped to change. In this election, it’s getting harder to tell the good guys from the bad.
To quote Professor Albus Dumbledore, “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
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