Why do entertainers run for office, but never scientists or philosphers? (voters, thought)
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I was listening to someone on the bus talk about how Arnold Schwarzenegger shouldn't have been elected governor of California (I agree) and he only won because he was a celebrity. Same thing with Trump. And I started wondering...what about intellectuals? I mean really, if this guy ran for office, who in their right mind wouldn't vote for him?
Jared Diamond is a genius, and he has studied issues in a historical context and can articulate them to almost anyone. Why the hell don't people like HIM run and win?
Or how about this man. Yelling at debates and calling name is not "thinking outside the box" or being "independent." But This fellow does think outside the box and his ideas deserve to be taken into consideration:
Could you imagine how things would have been different if Carl Sagan was elected President of the United States? Intelligence and humility running the show and not arrogance and appealing to the least common denominator?
Two kinds of people get elected in America: career politicians and celebrities. And by "celebrity" I don't mean simply famous people, but showbiz types of one kind or another.
And you know who to blame? The one group no one ever wants to blame: THE IDIOT AMERICAN VOTERS! If these people did run, no one would vote for them. It would be all about voting to "get dem illegals out a' here!" or "stopping the evvvvvvilllllllssssss of the mean, bad, very bad, awful 1%!"
Shallowness and demagoguery are the only things people today on both sides of the aisle will listen to, not intelligence and sincerity. Frankly, I have half a mind to learn German or Italian and begin the difficult task of immigrating to Switzerland.
President Sagan.... that would truly be the change that would make America great.
With a few exceptions, in a representative republic/pseudo-democracy real power does not lie with the politicians. Politics, in the public view, is theater, it is entertainment.
I remember as a young man that things were pretty glum in the 1970s.
"What I would really like to do is to go down in history as the President who made Americans believe in themselves again." - Ronald Reagan
So it took an entertainer to do that. I'd much rather have George Carlin as president leading cheers than some dullard.
Not that scientists and technicians and nurses and such do not play a role, on the contrary, the greatest role. And thankfully they are not politicians, thankfully this country does not work that way.
We, in our collective wisdom, leave the nuts and bolts to others.
Entertainers? Bet you heard that from the news media. Comparing Schwarzenegger to Trump? Just another attempt to make Trump look like less than he is. Didn't work.
I don't know about scientists except they probably wouldn't be able to handle the bs-ing aspect and the crowds but they should be comfortable with begging for money and the shark aspects. I read a lot of nonfiction and the scientists, even the brilliant ones, all seem to be a bunch of egotistical back-biting competitive SOBs so they should fit in there.
Shoot me now if a philosopher ever runs for office. I'd rather watch the Golf channel (no problem with golf playing, just golf as a spectator sport) 24/7 or a test pattern than listen to them for 5 minutes. Philosophers aren't do-ers. They'd talk everything to death and have no idea how to implement their ideas except in theory. I bet there isn't even one of them who would want to be president.
I don't know about scientists except they probably wouldn't be able to handle the bs-ing aspect and the crowds but they should be comfortable with begging for money and the shark aspects. I read a lot of nonfiction and the scientists, even the brilliant ones, all seem to be a bunch of egotistical back-biting competitive SOBs so they should fit in there.
Shoot me now if a philosopher ever runs for office. I'd rather watch the Golf channel (no problem with golf playing, just golf as a spectator sport) 24/7 or a test pattern than listen to them for 5 minutes. Philosophers aren't do-ers. They'd talk everything to death and have no idea how to implement their ideas except in theory. I bet there isn't even one of them who would want to be president.
We're on the same page about a philosopher. I just couldn't imagine them "negotiating". Just a lot of rubbing their chin and looking into space. I think that might tick off some of the foreign diplomats and leaders.
You could ask one if they might like to be president but with their thoughtfulness, you probably wouldn't get an answer in time for the 2016 race.
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that would truly be the change that would make America great.
Just another attempt to make Trump look like less than he is. Didn't work.
