A Disgusting Election

The old clichés are wrong. Once upon a time we may have campaigned in poetry and governed in prose, but today it is an unending barrage of garbage, half-truths, distortions and lies. Despite the partisanship that threatens to sink the ship of state, both sides offend. I have learned from TV that Carli Fiorina just loves shipping American jobs to China and that (Jewish) Barbara Boxer hates Israel. I now know that Meg Whitman loves sending jobs to Iran and Jerry Brown is pro cop killer. Sigh.

While I have strong political feelings, these distortions of record and character are not good for us as a nation. They discourage the middle of our political spectrum which is rapidly and understandably becoming cynical even despondent. Only the extremes are energized by these ersatz facts.

This is not simply a California problem. From taking on Rand Paul's college silliness to taking seriously the charge that Christine O'Donnell is witch or her very wealthy capitalist opponent Chris Coons was actually a "bearded Marxist" in college, this election is about everything but the real issues: Job, war and how to build up the economy.

No one dares actually present any substantive plans because any Democratic idea is a "job killer", and any Republican idea only "for the rich." And one more nauseating development: The xenophobia is dangerous and disgusting. In a truly global economy, both parties are running against outsourcing and the evil Chinese. Both are playing on our fear of immigrants--which is code for Hispanics.