I'm drooling right now . . . figuratively.
The masquerading, the posturing, the bragging, the personal attacks that are associated with the presidential campaigning are all in my wheelhouse! Allow me to explain.
I teach rhetoric and writing at Walsh University, which by itself may not sound overly exciting, but for one who enjoys watching how people try to persuade others to share their perspectives, it is a welcome challenge. Rhetoric, in its simplest form, means the art of persuading. It does not matter if it is a billboard, an advertisement, a plea for financial assistance, or a plan to be elected, all of us are involved in rhetorical situations. So, when a guy like Donald Trump enters the political arena taking on the entire country to subscribe to his beliefs, he provides a wonderful teaching opportunity. In short, Trump is a poster child for my classroom; putting him--and others--under the ol' classroom microscope is perfect for me . . . like I said, it's right in my wheelhouse.
To preface my perspective, I must stress that I am an Independent voter; I do not cater to the whims of either the Democratic or Republican parties simply because for years I have found their political posturing to be rather humorous and downright frustrating. "Drinking the tea" can oftentimes lead to people believing in extremes . . . that is not me. Rather, I draw my own line down the middle, allowing my reading and my viewing to shape my perspective. Having said that, I am comfortable examining the political views of many without a built-in bias. My main perspective, though, is to examine the tactics that are used by individuals and groups to sway their audiences. Trump, for example, is almost comical in a few respects because of his outright brashness and his criticism of everybody and everything; his popularity is quite high at the moment, probably because he is saying what many want to hear. In time, though, I suspect his act will grow old--we can only be told that someone is richer than us so many times before we begin to tune out everything he is saying. For the moment, though, Trump is running a masterful campaign: He has people's attention; he is speaking in an inflammatory, hard-to-ignore manner; and he is serving as a welcome alternative to his competitors. Right now, he has his audience . . . what more could a politician want? How his game goes from here, however, will be interesting; when he is forced to debate the truthfulness of his comments and when he is backed into a corner with skilled politicians and questioners where he must rely on more than just outlandish rhetoric, his money will not be of great benefit.
My point is this: Watching the politicians from both political parties stake their claims provides a great classroom opportunity for learning. For parents whose kids are preparing for their high school curriculum (Common Core) and for kids preparing for their college writing classes, here is a golden opportunity to learn--watch and analyze how people shape arguments to their advantage. That is a significant part of the English Core and also college freshmen writing classes. My contention for a long time is that we learn best from our everyday experiences more so than a textbook. Maybe if we ignore party doctrine and spend time objectively watching and listening, we could all learn from the slowly approaching election!
. . . . .
On the other hand, though, all the posturing may not matter that much. For whatever reasons we wish to choose, a growing number of people in our country are apathetic and simply do not take the time to vote. So, while candidates travel, speak, and spend their way to a hoped-for victory, one of the most common sense parts of the process is often overlooked: many people simply do not register to vote! Apathy is alive and well, believe me; opinions are held by everyone, but they really mean little. If we don't register to vote, we are not entitled to be listened to. Bottom line is we need to be informed and part of the process, don't we?
