Election

As I was watching the election with relentless vigor, I began to slowly contemplate the various proceedings of the election. It seemed rather peculiar to me that the John McCain was perceived through the vantage point of his similarity to both his predecessor and to the lack success of previous tactics employed rather than to his new ideas and an analytically based view of what impact they would potentially have. I found this rather unsettling, and the magnitude of the effect that the  general public on this idea further led to my disbelief. Instead of postulating the candidates by perceived value, the public fled from tragic circumstances of the current economy by embracing the opposite. These actions were not manifested through logic, but through fear. In essence, I concluded, the people must not only have developed the belief that the presidential power is absolute, but also that the few similarities between McCain and the previous president will undoubtedly yield a similar result. This however is the likely irreparable nature of humanity: judging others by a compilation of similarities to others they have encountered. When an individual encounters another, often, even if only subconsciously, that person will recognize that individual through similarities to those they have met or heard of, establishing the basis for many common prejudices, including racism. This idea does not only apply to humanity however, but seems to be present in all animals. Such is illustrated through the example of an abused dog I confronted in my childhood. When I approached the animal out of curiosity, it growled at me. Upon my asking the female owner quickly retold the life of the poor animal.This dog was blind in one eye and had been frequently been beaten badly by a male who was known to wear a baseball cap. Over and over the dog had been beaten. Eventually, the abused animal hated the bitter owner and did all it could to avoid him. Presently, she told me, although the dog had not been exposed to any further violence, the dog instantly bears great resentment toward all males and even greater so to those who are wearing baseball caps. The dog can smell, she says. The dog knows his previous owner is gone and that those approaching are clearly separate entities, but the dog still bears the fear and resentment toward males and caps due to the one experience with his owner, who exhibited both of these traits. It is clear through analysis that it is in our nature to relate people through similarities such as the dog did with his abuser. It is my fear that the election exploited this instinctive response at the expense of John McCain.