Posted by Leonard Steinberg on October 18th, 2012
A friend to-day summarized my exact thoughts on Tuesday’s presidential debate: It looked like it had been produced by BRAVO, the channel most famous for its lively, trashy, Jerry-Springer-esque reality such as the ‘Real Housewives of New Jersey’…..Did Mitt stand up in the middle of Obama’s tirade because he had seen that the night before when Theresa Giudice did the same thing? The in-your-face, tit-for-tat, non-factual, question-ignoring, history-bending antics of the two candidates was incredibly reminiscent of Bravo’s beauties. Was either candidate going to refer to any specific that we could all relate to? Of course not! The goal was….DRAMA! RATINGS! And while this may be understandable for a trashy television show,its somewhat sad that this vulgar world of ‘reality’ as entertainment has invaded everything, including the presidential debates.
Winning the debate was reduced to who could look most aggressive and tough-guy….. surely thats what we need in a manager, right? Neither candidate addressed how by reducing Federal taxes, the burden for running things would be shifted to states and probably impact real estate taxes. Neither candidate addressed the difference in earning $ 250k per year in New York versus Ardmore, Oklahoma……both view these earners as identical? Did either candidate address the fact that $ 1million may buy you a ‘mansion’ in Tupelo, Mississippi, but it only buys you an ordinary one bedroom condo in Manhattan……yet both are taxed with a MANSION tax of 1%? Neither candidate addressed the stupidities of some laws and the folly of averages. Neither addressed the enormous waste and inefficiencies in government. Neither addressed the mortgage tax deduction, one of the only decent tax deductions for middle class salaried homeowners.
The lack of detail, the weakness of the moderator in her incapacity to force the candidates to answer the questions and not make pre-scripted speeches, or identify this to the audience boldly, the farcical nature of the entire episode and the Bravo-esque quality of it all left me speechless. Until this evening.
We desperately need a THIRD PARTY to re-focus both parties more on practical solutions that work and strike compromises breaking the ridiculous gridlock we have in government. I propose we turn to the CENTRIST PARTY, a party that addresses everything with a bit more science, a bit more practical consideration and does what is best for the country, not for the minority radicals on the far left and the far right. The CENTRIST PARTY could boldly institute a tax credit for cost-of-living, based on the City you live in. It would look at each issue from a purely pragmatic standpoint and do what is smartest and best for society at large. The CENTRIST PARTY would be fiscally more conservative and socially more liberal. Mayor Bloomberg would be the inspiration. With each piece of legislation, the Democrats and Republicans would have to impress the Centrist Party with its levels of compromise, fairness and practical common sense…..you see, without the CENTRIST PARTY’s 10% of the vote, both parties will be unable to move their agenda’s through government with a majority. The Centrist Party would be the tie-breaker.
Lets do it!