by Neena Strichart
My interest in politics began as a young teenager when my father ran twice for city treasurer in Signal Hill. I loved observing my dad go through the process: campaigning, behind-closed-doors practicing of speeches, meetings with local movers and shakers, and, most importantly, participating in family prayers where Dad would ask for divine guidance. I could not have been prouder on those election nights back in the 1970s.
Watching my father being named the winner of both his initial and then second term sent excitement through me that still makes me smile. Through the years my interests in politics have expanded, probably because of my career choice. Where Signal Hill politics used to be my primary focus, I now thoroughly enjoy following other local races as well. Long Beach City Council elections are just around the corner, as are school board, assembly, and congress. I am watching closely to see what the candidates do and say and what their campaign literature proclaims about their candidacies. I read my own publication and well as other local new sources to keep up on the local races, attend forums when I can and personally meet as many of the folks running as possible.
Although I do not endorse political candidates, and never have, I find it interesting to see which individuals and organizations do endorse and who they choose. I then sit back and wonder how in the world they make those difficult decisions. The thought of endorsing a candidate scares the heck out of me. After all, who in the heck do I think I am to be such a perfect judge of character as to publicly come out and advise others to vote for this or that person? How are those choices made? Friendship? Party affiliation? Special interest? A combination of all three? I recently had someone ask me for the REAL reason I don’t endorse. I had already given my above reason about not believing that I am a perfect judge of character, but he apparently felt my answer was a cop-out and told me so to my face. So, to make my point, I said, “Hey, I’ve been married three times, so it is obvious that I don’t believe that what you see is what you get!”
I think he finally believed that I was giving him my honest opinion.
Watching the recent HBO movie Game Change about the Sarah Palin/John McCain presidential campaign made me feel better about my long-ago decision to not endorse. As was depicted in the movie, here was a group of seasoned politicians who worked very hard to do the best vetting of Palin that they could (albeit in a very short amount of time) before deciding to choose her as McCain’s running mate. As it turned out, there was much they did not know about her platform, knowledge of world events or, in some cases, her personal life and beliefs. If those guys, with all their connections and smarts, couldn’t find the perfect candidate, how in the heck could I?
With that said, I encourage you to do your best to learn about the candidates and make your own decisions. Others opinions may be helpful, but in the end it is you, my gentle readers, who will be alone in those voting booths.
