Where the TV Ad, DyingToVote.com and "the Smart Vote" Came From

- My name is Steve Schwarzkopf and I've lived two years longer than expected (a nasty cancer; I didn't even do the stuff that put you at higher risk for it; and they would have been fun!).  I'm bummed that my prognosis is so poor, uncomfortable much of the time (tumor pushing on nerves and side effects of treatment), and the failure of the last of the standard treatments for my tumor.

- You'd think that all this would be foremost on my mind (as it is at times), but the election in November usually worries me more of the typical day and takes up more of my internal dialogue (OK, so I talk to myself).  Frankly, I’m usually more afraid of how the election turns out than my terminal illness!

 - I obviously believe this election is critical, and will likely determine whether we leave our children, their children, and our other loved ones with a world that is liveable in the years to come.

- We just can't limit ourselves to the mainstream media for something this important.  Mainstreatm media is NOT liberal or conservative to me (I know, it’s not a popular opinion).  I see superficial (fluffy??) coverage of the most important stories and too much news carefully avoiding confronting the status quo. I don't blame the journalists (at least not completely), who at times are given “marching orders from above” (ex. Demand for 2:1 pro vs. con stories in the Iraq war run up).

- Why would the status quo be so important to the mainstream media?  Owners of the media giants are HUGE and diversified corporations.  Criticizing the status quo, therefore, is attacking your employer since their corporations have been compared to a well diversified mutual fund!  Isn't it interesting that an acceptable “hard hitting” story is one that reveals governmental abuse?   

• I'm sorry, but I would bet some big money (for me) that we get "fleeced" by more large corporations (Enron, Exon Mobile, maybe a few more) than we get fleeced by government.  There's also a MAJOR DIFFERENCE between poor oversight, corporate lobbyists getting money without merit, or weak regulation Vs. outright greed, predatory behavior, and use of "loopholes" by many corporations. 
  
• Incompetence is different than clever robbery.  Compared to failures of government oversight or "pork",  how many stories do we see about corporate greed, predatory lenders, skirting of polution and other safety standards?  I don't think enough, and we have pretty much maintained our view that the "biggest villain" is big government.
• I'm not for big government, I'm for good government.  We need it soooo much it is now literally hurting each and every one of us.   
• I agree with Walter Cronkite who was disgusted by the huge shift in news quality toward the end of his career.  He watched the distinction/division between the news and entertainment parts of the network(s) dissolve due to a HUGE change.  What was new and destructive to hard hitting, deep digging news, was the decision to insist on this division "turning a profit."
• What sells?  It doesn't take a rocket scientist (or psychiatrist) to know that sex and violence sell, but so do other sensational and human interest stories (like a terminally ill guy wanting people to vote?).  I told/used my personal story/illness/sensational stuff to create an ad that might get people's attention (but this has always been "normal" in advertising).  What's new, is that I made the news!!  It's fairly sad to know that I'm a prime example of "the problem" in news.
• At the time of retirement, Mr. Cronkite stated "They'd rewrite Exodus with a car chase," referring to the change in the news.  Without digging deeper and avoiding sources that are obviously biased toward one point of view, we do not get truly useful information on the most important topics affecting us.
• We also can't just listen media sources that we just "like."  Unfortunately, human nature has its good and not so good parts.  One is the seeming attraction to voices that make us self righteously angry.  We also have a tendency to look for and find scapegoats and blame them for all our ills.  These groups change over time, but there are always the "favorite" minorities to hate.  Unfortunately, anger, rage, and hate sell very well in our country.  It is a strange thing (learned that in psychiatry school, yup I did!), and we somehow enjoy/are activated/feel good/are reinforced by being "self-righteously" (ok, I made that word up) enraged.  We need to AVOID THIS TEMPTATION!  It's tempting, but good, good people hold very different opinions (and it doesn't matter how smart they are).
• I like to think that we take in all the information around us (ideally good information and at least information from all sides of an issue) and then decide what we think.   I know that we all decide, for whatever reasons, who or what the "real" villains/dangers/enemies of our ideal government are. The "villains," or "roots of evil" to our nation are very different to different people (particularly when asked for a quick answer).  But whenever I talk with people in length and depth about any major issue and the state of our nation, I hear consistently that we see LOTS of villains, roots of "evil," or opportunities for improvement (for us having to deal with regulations and getting slapped for not beingin compliance).  But I do think this is REALITY.  It's not rocket science, but it's not simple, either.
• Our political parties thrive on focusing on a very few issues (big government, big corporations, who's tougher militarily, welfare abuse, who can lower our taxes, etc.)  All of these things are important (and many,many more), with a truly good answer not being an extreme, but rather a "middle ground."  Why is it that lots of countries have a left leaning party, a right leaning party, and a moderate party; while we don't get this?  With two parties and this simplifying or dumbing down of the issues, it forces polarization and forced choices between extremes of positions and what we feel is "most important." 
  
• So, my simple minded solution is: after arming ourselves with good information, which I hope to have provided some help with on the "Low Bias Links" page, we need to avoid the pitfalls our system almost forces us into, and we must "show up" and cast the Smart Vote this November (obvously, it won't be the same for all of us).  I like to think I'll vote correctly ("I'm not bossy, my ideas is just better" Lily Tomlin, sometime over 30 years ago).
• I decided to purchase "air time" for an ad encouraging/begging/pleading that people take this election seriously and find good information about the candidates & their positions.  Fortunately, my wife has been truly supportive (as we each have veto power over large purchases, she's the one that made this happen!!).
• Please, please, please join "the Smart Vote" corp and really participate in our democracy at this crucial time by voting to help save this glorious world we've been given.