Seriously

There’s so much news to which I could endlessly hyperlink but I’m going to believe my readers are already staring at the headlines, mostly in disbelief. Of paramount concern right now is the economy, especially amidst the bailouts. Although I’m the farthest thing imaginable from an expert, I’m trying hard to follow the helpful articles I’m reading in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and various on-line sites. Rare kudos to the media for trying to make the explanations as simple as possible.

Of course, foreign affairs, while not dominating, remain always-important and ever-present, considering that bombings continue in Iraq, the latest apparently targeting not only American and British troops but also cooperating Iraqui security forces.

There doesn’t seem to be any upside to the news this week, except there could be. Maybe, just maybe, the candidates will be allowed to – or forced to, depending on how you see things – return to discussing serious issues.  Maybe we’ll be able to drop the faux insults and counter-charges and stupid – yes, stupid, focus on personality and who’s hot and who’s hip.  Maybe we can lose the idea that we should vote for someone like us – politicians aren’t like us.  Maybe we can prove Tucker Carlson, the conservative pundit, late of Crossfire, wrong when he says Americans aren’t interested in issues, only in entertainment.

I propose a different litmus test for all candidates in the final weeks, one that should have been  the ONLY test all along. I say we look at our candidates’ KNOWLEDGE. On one hand, that seems obvious, yet we don’t seem to place much value on it. Some would argue that, with all the experts around, the President and Vice-President don’t have to really KNOW all that much.

I ferociously disagree. I want people who can listen, who can learn, who can be taught and are willing to devote time to conceptual thinking. I want people who have at least a basic grasp of economics and tribal conflicts that inflame so many regions of the world. They don’t have to be experts but they have to know enough to know which experts to call upon.  

I want a President who’s smart. Yes, smart; someone  who thinks it’s important to know things, who isn’t afraid of mastering the details, someone able to listen to and work with other smart people. I don’t want anyone who seems to be stubborn, closed-minded, or hard-wired to a single point of view. I don’t think making major stumbles that reveal a lack of understanding on important issues is endearing or entertaining and I don’t think pointing it out is elitist, biased, “liberal”, condescending, or hate-mongering. If anything, it’s patriotic.

I’m tired of apologizing for admiring people with background, with learning, with – here’s that word again – KNOWLEDGE.  Even David Brooks, a writer whose opinons I don’t usually share, pointed out in his Op-Ed column the other day: “Democracy is not average people selecting average leaders. It is average people with the wisdom to select the best prepared.”

I just hope we stop entertaining ourselves long enough to start practicing democracy