ignorant voters

I keep thinking I'm as disillusioned by politics as I can get, but then I read an article like this. I'm appalled by a 74-year-old resident of Findlay, Ohio, named Jim Peterman, who sounds reasonably intelligent, but who chooses to believe what his friends and neighbors say about Barack Obama rather than trust the facts as printed in the newspapers and trustworthy blogs, broadcast in non-Fox-news shows, and available from a plethora of other reliable news sources if an intelligent voter cares to do a bit of research. This yahoo believes that "Barack Obama, born in Africa, is a possibly gay Muslim racist who refuses to recite the Pledge of Allegiance." (Note that those aren't his words; this is a quote from another resident who spouts the lies that most Findlay residents are happy to believe. Findlay's astute analysis? ""I don't know. The whole thing just scares me," Peterman said. "I'm almost starting to feel like the best choice is not voting at all."")

Peterman is a card-carrying patriot. This is true because he flies a flag in his front yard and has since 1960. His entire neighborhood is simply awash in unabashed displays of red, white and blue, from painted windows to multiple flags per household, which is a result of one-upmanship. Findlay was officially dubbed "Flag City, USA" by the House of Representatives, courtesy of a local congressman. So Findlayians must be patriots, yes? If this is the definition, I am not and never will be a patriot. For me, patriotism is personal, and a big part of it is casting the most informed votes possible.

But back to Findlay's peculiar brand of intellectual patriotism. Leroy Pollard, another political scholar and resident of Findlay, Ohio, states, ""I understand he's from Africa, and that the first thing he's going to do if he gets into office is bring his family over here, illegally. He's got that racist [pastor] who practically raised him, and then there's the Muslim thing. He's just not presidential material, if you ask me."

Peterman is opposed to the war and doesn't much like McCain. He's thinking he'll just not vote, though. This Obama character is too iffy. How can Peterman trust him? His buddies can't be wrong - could they?

Talk about sheeple.

This is one of the scariest articles I've read during this election. It makes me want to call this Peterson guy and ask him what he's using in place of a brain. It makes me want to fly to Findlay to take a look at these brain-dead Stepford voters for myself. Well, I guess there's no rush. The dumbing down of the US isn't exactly a new story - we'll probably continue this decline for a long time, much to our detriment.

Apparently Findlay's economy is crappy, which makes it even scarier that residents of Findlay supporting a presidential candidate like McCain who confessed he doesn't know much about the economy - this while he was running for president. (When would be a good time to bone up? After you're in office?) Findlay residents must not mind McCain's vile temper - he's on record as having referred to his current wife (not the one who waited for McCain to come home from Vietnam, only to be dumped for Cindy) as an effing c word - sorry to be so demure, but that's one word I just won't use. I suppose Findlay residents wouldn't believe that. It's much easier to question the ethics of a racially suspect candidate. (Findlay is 93% white.)

I'd love to write a more coherent rant about Findlay and Peterson, but I'm too sad, too angry, and too deeply offended. Most of all, I'm too worried that the American voters will once again get the president they deserve.