My Take: Too Much Reality TV

Yes, I watched some of the most recent Republican debate last evening. I compare it to the "Gunfight at the OK Corral." There were definitely a lot of shots fired.

And then there were four
March 3, 2016

The four remaining Republican candidates took to the airwaves again to enlighten us as to why we should elect them President in November. 

For three of the men, the evening can be summed up in the following paragraph extracted from the New York Times article titled, In Republican Debate, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio Wage Urgent Attacks on Donald Trump

At times, the face-off in Detroit also deteriorated into the kind of junior high school taunts that have startled many Republican elders but have done little to dent Mr. Trump’s broad appeal. As Mr. Trump and Mr. Rubio traded insults over their manhood, Mr. Trump recalled Mr. Rubio’s innuendo that Mr. Trump’s “small hands” correlated with another part of his anatomy.

My Take? Unless these guys can stop slandering each other and begin to propose solid mean to get our dysfunctional government working again, I am pretty much done with all three of them. 

The only candidate on the stage who has meaningful proposals was largely overlooked in the media bloodbath that the media would have us believe is a debate. He was mentioned only once in the article I referenced above.

The fourth candidate, Gov. John Kasich of Ohio, who has positioned himself as the positive-sounding and seasoned executive in the race, largely stuck to that strategy. But Mr. Kasich, who is lagging far behind Mr. Trump and the other candidates, struggled to leave a mark in the debate.

Gov Kasich left his mark by not lowering himself into the mudslinging into which the debates and the campaigning have degenerated. Sadly, I am sure he will soon be out of the race.

The media and the candidates have allowed the presidential primary season to become a reality TV show.

It is reality and it is just as bad as any other reality show currently being offered, the problem is--this one has real consequences not just for our country, but for the world.

My Take: We need substance and not sensationalism to help us elect the next leader of the free world!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD