Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Democracy as reality TV

We're sitting in front of the television, the entire family unit, watching the results from the Iowa caucuses.

The farm manager says, if Gingrich doesn't do well here, does that mean he's done?

No, it doesn't mean that. Iowa doesn't really mean anything.

I knew that was the wrong answer as soon as it came out. The response was what I expected.

So why are we watching?

There's certainly more compelling viewing available tonight. Canada is up against Russia in the World Junior Hockey Championships. I'm rooting for Russia.

Spike Lee's documentary about Katrina is on too. I think that's the best work Lee has every done. His dramatic stuff tends to lean on the race card a little too hard for my liking. But I think he finds the perfect balance here. One of the best docs ever made as far as I'm concerned, and I've seen everything by the fat white guy who wins all the awards. Moore?

So why do we watch Iowa?

I think for the first time in a long time there's a horse in the race that doesn't belong to the usual owners. If Ron Paul gets any traction whatsoever we can keep our hopes alive that real change could be coming. This is the first guy to get this far who says he's going to cut the military-industrial combine off at the knees. Were he ever to reach the White House, and were he ever to follow through on that promise, the world would be a better place.

That alone is reason enough to watch the Iowa caucuses.

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