Election Costs

The presidential election of 2012 is estimated to cost $2.5 billion dollars. Given the current state of our economy and the fact that many citizens are unemployed and/or just struggling to get by, the word that comes to mind in describing this outrage is obscene. Some say that this entire election cycle might costs as much as $7 billion. A good deal of this money is being spent on television commercials, especially in battleground states like Ohio. These ads neither instruct or inform, their only purpose is to demonize “the other guy,” often with innuendo or outright lies. The result is that more and more Americans become cynical about politics and don’t go to the polls, believing that both candidates are dishonest and incompetent.

To demonstrate our disgust with this process, I encourage everyone to email both the Obama and Romney campaigns and request that each party declare a one day moratorium on TV ads, and that the monies that would have been spent that day to be donated to the poor for food, shelter or medical care. This would certainly be a better way to spend this money than these shrill, strident and misleading commercials. Just by doing this simple act, we can express our dissatisfaction with the current foul and amoral system of choosing our leaders.