Tuesday, October 28, 2008

David Sedaris on undecided voters

For those who don't know, David Sedaris is a writer, humorist and a regular on NPR's "This American Life". He had this piece in The New Yorker

I don’t know that it was always this way, but, for as long as I can remember, just as we move into the final weeks of the Presidential campaign the focus shifts to the undecided voters. “Who are they?” the news anchors ask. “And how might they determine the outcome of this election?”

Then you’ll see this man or woman— someone, I always think, who looks very happy to be on TV. “Well, Charlie,” they say, “I’ve gone back and forth on the issues and whatnot, but I just can’t seem to make up my mind!” Some insist that there’s very little difference between candidate A and candidate B. Others claim that they’re with A on defense and health care but are leaning toward B when it comes to the economy.

I look at these people and can’t quite believe that they exist. Are they professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of attention?

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?”

To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.


Hit the link above for the whole piece. Good stuff.

Thanks to BobZ for posting that on another site.

3 comments:

MyEyedeas said...

Funny stuff. Especially the airplane analogy. I'm not sure I've heard this guy but I love This American Life.

Jared said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jared said...

I think the line about the undecided voters that says, "who looks very happy to be on TV" says a lot. It is like they are people willing to throw away any respect others might have for their judgment in return for some special power and attention at the end of an election.