The Risk In Voting Your Impressions: A Sponge for Prejudice

I recently said to someone that I was impressed with Barack Obama’s autobiographical book, The Audacity of Hope. The person to whom I spoke replied that he found it hard to “be impressed” with someone with whom he disagreed so strongly on issues. I countered by suggesting that we pause for perspective. In my mind the differences of opinion on issues should not pre-determine judgment about a person’s personal qualities. All admirable people never will be found congregated on one side of any issue. When I said I was impressed by Obama, I meant “issues aside.” Though I would not vote for McCain for “issues” reasons, still I am duly impressed with him as a man. I admire McCain’s gritty determination, his soldierly loyalty, and his independent spirit. I am able to appreciate these qualities because he has been a public figure for quite awhile and I am informed about his impressive characteristics. I would submit that even though Obama is younger and has had less exposure as a public figure, he fails to “impress” only where information about him is lacking--I mean information, not misinformation. It happens that, regarding both Presidential candidates, deleting electioneering mis-information, should enable us to realize how “impressive,” and I would say “admirable” both of these men are--again I say issues aside. As a historian, I have a natural bent for keeping issues and personalities as mutually uncontaminating categories. I would cite Robert E. Lee as an example--a man who committed treason against our country; but because he was a Christian gentleman of tremendous leadership talent and professional skill, who knew how to be in public what he was in private, he is honored now, with the shouting stopped, as a fine American. I think both Obama and McCain are eligible to join Lee’s club. I think Lee was tragically wrong and I won’t vote for McCain, but having read Obama’s book, I was “impressed.” McCain and Obama are impressive individuals, each in his own way. Both easily will be noted by evenhanded historians as “impressive” individuals to be admired by later generations who by then have no partisan connections to defend. I suggest we ignore the slurs and slanders sent flying in both directions at election time and vote according to how we feel on the “issues” and on informed opinion about impressive “persons,” giving both person and issues equal consideration. If it is not a tough call to make, I suspect one of the categories is being disregarded and our vote will only be a reflection of our uncouth prejudices.

Doug Good