Politics and the Internet

I really enjoyed Cass Sunstein's point that "Unanticipated encounters, involving unfamiliar and even irritating topics and points of view, are central to democracy and to freedom itself."


I feel like this quote fits in very well with the topic of the YouTube debates. I wasn't very familiar with what the YouTube debates were until class, but I had heard the term before. Now, I am a huge fan. I wish that every election could be held in such a manner. Let's do away with the ridiculously over-scripted and ultimately fake and useless debates that are televised now, and bring in a new generation of debates that force the running politicians to actually think on their feet for once in their lives.


(Can anyone tell that I have a rather low opinion of our political system and the people in it?)


The American people are the ones taking the majority of the hits for what their politicians screw up, so why shouldn't they be able to voice their questions and concerns? Their questions may not sound as eloquent as the ones that we are used to, but at least they would be real questions straight from the mouths of those who are most affected by horrible political decisions.

Rather than writing a nice and neat letter to local congressman, creating YouTube videos puts faces on the many problems America has. They force politicians to realize that these are real people and real problems, not just letters that are cluttering up politicians' desks.

Politicians put on a glamorous mask and parade around with their eloquent words and pretty campaign art. But politics aren't pretty. They're dirty and terrible problems that need to be faced and solved, not swept under the rug. No longer should politicians be allowed to skate by under the radar, yammering on endlessly on topics that they are well-versed in and completely ignoring the topics that they know little to nothing about. The American people should be given the chance to be that irritating itch that politicians just can't seem to reach. They should force politicians to tread water in unfamiliar territory until they come up with a satisfying answer. Get rid of the crutches that politicians so often use and force them to be the upstanding and powerful figures that they claim they are.

Maybe it is just my opinion of the pitiful state that American politics are in, but burning the script of political debates and allowing politicians to break a sweat and provide real, substantial solutions to overbearing problems seems like a brilliant idea that should be given another shot.