I love finding political gems in the middle of non-news mags. I mean, The Economist is great, but woman cannot live by (okay, Stairmaster by) hard news alone. In Allure's January Insider's Guide, Cokie Roberts gives tips on how to follow the election.
Here are highlights:
- It's not just about the candidate, it's about how the candidate will fare against the presumed opposition. Huckabee's great in a vacuum, but Huckabee vs. Hillary? Not a fair fight.
- Some groups are like weather vanes: Catholics and Ohioans, for instance, usually (and oddly) pick the winner.
- Women matter. The way women vote, and the issues they prioritize, will, like Bush emphasizing safety against terrorism to women in 2004, affect the outcome of the election.
I like Cokie Roberts, (and can't wait for her new book, Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation,) but I wasn't thrilled with her wrap up to the piece. To see what she said, please read more.
"It just makes me crazy when someone says it doesn't matter who wins or there's no difference between the candidates. There is. Elections have consequences."
Yeah, but those are two distinct and disparate statements. It's possible to know that it matters who wins, but in this uber-groomed, spit-polished campaign where spotting the differences can be like nailing Jell-o, saying candidates appear the same is more than a fair sentiment. I mean, we all saw the last Democratic Debate in Iowa...
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How did I miss this? I need to drag that issue out and read this.
1My opinion is that during the early primaries it is about the candidate. While Huckabee couldn't ultimately win against a talking dog, a good showing for these oddball candidates in the early primaries is highly informative to the eventual winners. Its indicative of the values and opinions of what will become their eventual constituency. So for now vote Kucinich. Hillary will be there when it matters!
2I'm not sure that I understand the vacuum comment... and ultimately, I don't care if you're writing for allure or the new yorker, she's being way too colloquial for my tastes.
3I agree with you on Cokie's ending statement. I started figuring out during the Bush/Gore race that it's all a race to the middle of the road.
4"Elections have consequences"...bottom line. I find myself suffering from an election issue 8 years ago...called Bush.
5I didn't see this!!! Anyway, this is why I love Glamour! :]
6How can you not see differences between candidates? That does not make sense to me at all. If the debate does not point them out to you then look to other media sources. They all have different viewpoints in different ways.
7i can see how on the democrat side they are all basically saying the same "safe" thing, they know what won them the house, senate and congress and democrats are not going to stray from that formula. but on the republican side, the party is still searching for their 21st century identity so you have a range of hyper right and religious to your middle ground to ron paul (who is in a catagory all his own).
8I think they might all look the same if you skim the surface, as members of the same party tend to have similar priorities. But how they choose to handle those high-priority issues is very different. AND, how they communicate those ideas is equally important, in my opinion.
9I am a huge Obama supporter. It drives me insane when people say they don't know what he stands for...because they wait for clips on the news to display those complex ideas. The news will NEVER give their stance on issues in a realistic way...they are too concerned about how our politicians laugh, or what color tie they wear. Facts don't get ratings, catchy phrases that mean nothing do.
If you go to the candidates websites, their stances on issues are usually very clear. On Obama's site, if you click on an issue you can chose to get a summary of his ideas...or a description that is very specific and pages long.
10You know what, I love the appearances of these kinds of articles in everyday magazines. It shows the publishers know what gets under its readerships' skin. And credits us with the intelligence to make up our own minds... at least printing this kind of thing is a jumping off point for discussions and debates online and in houses across the world.
11Oh god... I am sick to death of magazines like Allure dumbing down politics for women.
Ladies, let me make a suggestion: If you are interested in politics and learning more, please don't take your information from Allure. Watch the debates. Watch the news. Do some research. Don't accept that "Huckabee vs. Hillary" isn't a fair fight just because some editor at Allure decrees it so (in fact, it would be a fair fight, since Democrats and Republicans alike hate Hillary and many people vow to only vote against her, regardless of party line).
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