Thursday, September 13, 2012

Behavior

The twins, for whatever reason, are both running for student council this year. Elections are next week.

Last night they had to attend a mandatory "election rules" class. So, while Mrs. Grumpy picked up Frank from jail the bus stop, I took Craig and Marie to the meeting.

(There were some touchy issues. Craig's Hair, his running mate, had threatened to leave the ticket in a dispute over the newest member of his entourage, Craig's Cast, recently receiving more attention. The situation was defused by an agreement that Craig's Cast will be removed in 4 weeks. Craig's hair has now agreed to stay onboard for another 20 years, after which it will have the option of leaving at its own discretion and be replaced by Craig's Cheap Rug.)

Anyway, all kids were required to shake hands with the people they're running against, and then the following points were covered:

1. Keep it positive.

2. No negative statements. Give people a reason to vote for you, NOT a reason to vote against your opponent.

3. Don't make promises you know you can't keep.

4. Stick to the real issues (I have no idea what "real issues" there are in student council).

5. Be honest.

6. No screaming, blaming, or finger-pointing.

7. Be a good sport.

8. All campaign posters must be removed by the end of the day after the election.


I know I've touched on this before. And listening to the talk, I wonder: Why can't we do this on a national level? What the hell kind of world is it where grown-ups behave worse than kids? Aren't we supposed to be the ones setting a good example?

I still like my idea of a reality show called "Modern Sandbox:" Politicians who espouse screaming and yelling at the opposition will be dropped into a desert with an equal number of equally stubborn people from the other side, under circumstances where their mutual survival depends on finding ways to work together and be polite. Advertising revenue and T-shirt sales will go toward the national debt.


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18 comments:

  1. heatherSeptember 13, 2012 at 7:33 AM

    I was reading this in Google reader and the ad below it said, "Josh Mandel - A politician you can't trust"

    Guess that proves your point.

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  2. JulieSeptember 13, 2012 at 8:50 AM

    i liked the idea of dumping all politicians on an island and coming back 4 years later to see who was left ...

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  3. Bob@thenestSeptember 13, 2012 at 10:19 AM

    We can't do it on a national level because we adults supposedly know better than kids. But we adults are the ones who learn the prejudices and ego-building skills of winning at all costs. We're much too sophisticated and thinking to just allow the world to exist without our thumbprint on its jugular.

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  4. taradonSeptember 13, 2012 at 11:36 AM

    Wow, the election season would be so much less painful if all the politicians had to follow these rules!

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  5. Ivan IlyichSeptember 13, 2012 at 12:59 PM

    Another way to look at it is: Why isn't the school preparing students for the real world?

    ReplyDelete
  6. MingleSeptember 13, 2012 at 1:06 PM

    I could see your "Modern Sandbox" show quickly digressing into a "Lord of the Flies" situation, where the weakest one aka Piggy gets shoved into quicksand or dies in the most gruesome way.
    ...This should be televised!!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. PackerSeptember 13, 2012 at 2:28 PM

    In matters political I most respectfully disagree with your assessment as to how it should be handled.

    http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6087157458596608088#editor/target=post;postID=7685490043091564953;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=0;src=postname

    ReplyDelete
  8. Steeny LouSeptember 13, 2012 at 4:20 PM

    Dr. Grumpy, did you mean "public school" when you crossed out the word "jail"? If so, hahahahaa! I've been referring to it as "prison without bars" for many year! Here's a blog entry where I touch on that nickname:

    http://holy-sheepdip.blogspot.ca/2012/05/m-dawg-facebook-repartee.html

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousSeptember 13, 2012 at 5:58 PM

    I once read an article to the effect that attack politics alienate the centrists and make them less likely to vote, while motivating the hardcore members and making them more likely to vote.

    Therefore attack politics make sense: if you do it that way, you can tell which races are foregone conclusions and a waste of party money, and which might be winnable or losable depending on who manages to get more of their own party members furious at the possibility that the other guy might win.

    Besides, as long as lousy our-party rule beats brilliant their-party rule (as the hardcore partisans are likely to think it does), the people are better off with pulling out all the stops to ensure a win by the narrowest of margins in an election where almost nobody votes, too.

    What the hell kind of world is it where the grownups behave worse than the kids? If the researchers whose article I read are right, it's the kind of world where kids don't have access to professional strategists and pollsters.

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  10. merinzSeptember 13, 2012 at 5:59 PM

    I think all wars should be fought this way. The heads of state of the opposed countries could meet in a field, fight it out, and we would all watch on TV. A win win situation all round with minimal loss of life.

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  11. AnonymousSeptember 13, 2012 at 11:19 PM

    Now that's reality TV that I might actually watch.

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  12. AnonymousSeptember 14, 2012 at 2:39 AM

    Could be worse: google images under keyword 'taiwanese parliament'

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  13. AnonymousSeptember 14, 2012 at 5:43 PM

    Did I miss the blog post about Craigs broken leg? I think we might need a story!

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  14. AnonymousSeptember 15, 2012 at 12:49 PM

    Wait a minute, aren't your twins always beating each other up? And now they're running against each other in student government?

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  15. Grumpy, M.D.September 15, 2012 at 6:14 PM

    They aren't running for the same office.

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  16. AnonymousSeptember 16, 2012 at 10:43 PM

    That could work.
    For every negative comment, dock them 5% (absolute not relative).
    That way after only 10 negative comments each, neither can win. Though then you guys might get one of the other ones.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Ms. DonnaSeptember 17, 2012 at 1:36 PM

    Good for them! (Craig, The Hair and Marie) Warning to Dr. Grumpy: You might be raising a future lawyer or two. Three, if you count The Hair.

    ReplyDelete
  18. VickiSeptember 19, 2012 at 10:09 AM

    I love your idea for a reality show! I think you should propose it to a TV station! I bet it would get good ratings too!

    ReplyDelete

So wadda you think?