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May 30, 2008

Old school politics ~ I’m voting for Hillary because I’m a woman

When I was a fifth grader, I voted for the boy who was running for the President of the Student Council rather than the girl, because “boys make better leaders.” My vote choice was particularly ironic because I myself was running for Vice President of the Student Council. I lost by one vote.

I regret my reason for my vote, not the vote itself. Had I voted for the girl because she was a girl, I wouldn’t feel any prouder of my decision.

My interests and view of the world are influenced by my gender. My ideal candidates might well be female more often than male. And, all things being equal, I probably would be inclined to vote for my own gender. But gender alone is a dangerous reason for making a candidate selection, as is race or other personal demographics.

That’s why I was concerned when a woman I’ve known for years said,

- I’m voting for Hillary because I’m a woman.

When I hesitated, Kim went into more detail about policy, but I suspect her first comment was more reflective of her reasoning.

I would feel the same concern had someone said,

- I’m voting for Obama because I’m black.

or:

- I’m voting for McCain because I’m a white male.

Wouldn’t it be great if they had taught us how to vote issues in our Student Council elections? Wouldn’t it be great if they had required us to give policy reasons for our votes?

In the meantime, I am glad that my friend figured our she needed a better reason for her preference than gender identification.

May 26, 2008

A better way ~ a two year old learns to sift through spin

Author M. Gigi Durham started teaching her daughter critical thinking skills to help her see through marketing and spin when her daughter was just two years old.

Durham says, “If they’re watching a commercial on TV, and there is a toy, you can just start talking to them: ‘Do you think that toy is as good when you bring it home as it is on TV? Do you know why they make it look so fun, and like these kids are having so much fun? Because they really want you to spend money on it.’”

Durham concludes, “They understand.”

The market forces in our media-driven world are compelling. It appears there’s more to be gained by empowering ignorance and the lowest common denominator than by empowering intelligence and insight.

Unite and Concur is about empowering the high road - even if there is no profit in it. You can never start too young - or continue too old.

People who sell sex and policies and drugs and otherwise profit from spin and ignorance aren’t motivated to raise the dialogue to a more noble one.

Are you?

May 7, 2008

Communication standards ~ Political bullying…in kindergarden?

I thought I already knew how divisive the political environment is. I thought I had heard it all. But I learned something that surprised me when a viewer called in to a TV interview show I was on for my Unite and Concur eBook. The caller relayed sordid tales of political bullying in her child’s elementary school.

Since that day, I have heard other tales of the political divide trickling down to our kids.

My eBook talks about how to handle political bullies, and you can get some quick tips here.

Have you or your family members been subjected to political bullying? Please email me or post comments here with your tales. Thanks!

And have a great, bully-free week.

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