singley.org > blog archives > Zogby, Cokie, Swinging, Etc: Make it Stop 10.31.2004

There was a point about a month ago when I felt like I was slowly morphing into CNN. Political editorials emanated from my pores, Iraq updates scrolled from my left eye to the right, Wolf Blitzer whispered questions in my ears.

It was political overload, and it was getting out of hand. I needed a break from words like Zogby, electoral math, swing state, Cokie, swiftboat and white Catholic senior Floridian women. So instead of being an inert yet voracious political consumer, I, along with a group of like-minded Chicagoans, bypassed the dozens of media middlemen and drove though Waukegan, Gurnee, Antioch, Kenosha, Racine and Milwaukee to talk directly to a couple dozen people in Waukesha, Wisconsin about John F. and George W. The street on which a pair of us were door-knocking was rather affluent, and Bush/Cheney signs almost outnumbered seasonal flag displays and "Bless This House" twig-wreaths. But we chugged along, representing ACT directly and Kerry indirectly, by asking people what issues they cared about, who they were voting for, whether they were registered, etc. And by the end, despite tallying about 8 of 10 houses for W and listening to people parrot views they heard on FOX and talk radio, I felt better. It was encouraging to learn that virtually no one was opinionless and everyone genuinely cared about the outcome of the election. Even more encouraging was that the Kerry supporters nearly started jumping up and down once they realized they were talking to a like-minded voter. Speaking with these fervent Democrats and giving good information to undecideds was a boost, no question, but even more so was feeling all grassroots, and realizing that apathy will certainly not be a factor is this election.

When I got back, I cut back on my consumption of ubiquitous punditry, not wanting to taint my 20 or so fresh Midwestern editorials. I still scanned New York Times headlines, listened to NPR in the shower, but that's about it. When you look at what has actually happened in the campaign during the last few months, there is very little of interest to report. I also still listen to people and rant about particularly flagrant offenses by the President, but mostly now I'm just waiting. I'm anxious for November 3rd (or 4th or 5th or 27th) so we can begin a new phase, one defined either by an exciting if daunting opportunity to rebuild our foreign and domestic policy, or by four years of at least 50% of Americans more united than ever against shortsightedness, fear-mongering and incompetence.