I lay awake wondering how did we manage to narrow down a wide field of potential candidates to possibly the least qualified and least “Presidential” of the lot? I bear a burden of guilt for adopting a wait and see attitude, not getting informed and involved much, much sooner. I was too tired, too busy, and not expert enough. I opted to wait until some winnowing took place before choosing my candidate. Suddenly, to my shock and amazement, the field narrowed to one to me unacceptable man.How did this happen?! What have I done (me and so many like me) by not doing?!
Sleepless pondering led me to realize the responsibility is not the electorate's alone. It takes a certain amount of ego to run for any office, let alone President. However, it is easy enough to often think “I could do a better job than that guy” and often be right. In which case is not one then obligated to step forward? The ego becomes a problem when multiple candidates similarly qualified and of not widely divergent views, rather than unite in a common cause, each insists that (S)HE is the chosen one. There is no one clear choice, so intelligent, thoughtful, involved citizens are divided among them until none of them has enough support to go on. The last man standing is the one absolutely least qualified who had found some point of unity around which to rally enough supporters to out number the divided more otherwise reasonable options. Divide and be conquered and they did it to themselves. Ego.
Does this relieve me of culpability? No. Had I (and other wait-and-see-ers) become involved sooner, we might have tipped the balance for a more worthy candidate. This representative democracy thing is work.
On the other hand, it was only in the almost too late desperate last moment the less egotistical candidate of my now enthusiastic choice came forward. Evan McMullen
