Election time is rolling around and in the spirit of the season I’ve produced a completely objective and non-partisan guide to the two major Presidential candidates for those 14 truly undecided voters in the country. Feel free to pass it out to your library users.
Height and Great Hair Index
Two important factors in a political campaign. Supposedly the taller candidate always wins, and when was the last time we had a bald President?
Obama: 6’1″, hair too short to be great, turning whiter every moment he’s President
Romney: 6’2″, great hair, got the shellacked pompadour and distinguished gray at the temples going for him
Point: Romney
Celebrity Endorsement Index
Since celebrities are celebrated because of their political wisdom and because they’re so much smarter than us ordinary people, it’s important to know who’s voting for whom.
Obama: Scarlett Johansson–talented, articulate, very hot as Black Widow
Romney: Ted Nugent–old, kinda scary, famous rock musician 35 years ago
Point: Obama
Does that not seem fair? Okay, let’s try it again.
Obama: George Clooney–handsome, articulate, women want him and men want to be him
Romney: Gene Simmons–old, kinda scary, famous rock musician 35 years ago
Point: still Obama
Racist Index
For voters who really don’t like brown people, despite, you know, some of their best friends being brown people.
Obama: definitely black despite that white mother of his
Romney: very, very white
Point: Romney
Lone Individual Well Being Meter
For voters who think their personal well being is determined by who is President, and that it alone should determine your vote. Am I better off than I was four years ago? Yes, I am. Thank you, Mr. President.
Point: Obama
Rich White Male Index
For voters who believe that rich white males are, by definition, superior to everyone else and deserving of tax breaks, like capital gains tax rates being significantly lower than income and social security tax rates.
Obama: not rich, not white, male
Romney: rich, white, male, liked by other rich white males, loves tax loopholes and offshore accounts
Point: Romney
Foreign Policy Index
Obama: 3.5 years of actually being President and having to make decisions, killed Osama bin Laden
Romney: No foreign policy experience. Not even liked by the British, despite their “shared Anglo-Saxon heritage.” Best in Republican lineup because he shared the primary with the most foreign-policy-challenged Republicans since the 1930s. Didn’t the Republicans used to have this category wrapped up?
Point: Obama
Crazies who are more anti-Obama than pro-governing Index
Mitch McConnell: “the single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”
Point: Romney
Stock Market Index
Like astrological signs, stock market indicators tell us who to vote for, or something.
Dow Jones on 1/23/09, four days after Obama took office: 8077.56
Dow Jones on 9/14/12 at lunchtime: 13,592.63
Point: Obama
Hopelessly Deluded Index
Four years ago, this would have undeniably gone to Obama. Otherwise sane and intelligent people devolved into breathless disciples who were then disappointed that Obama’s election was not in fact equivalent to the second coming of Christ. Last week on the radio I heard a woman from Virginia say she was voting for Romney “because we’ve got women living in cars with little kids and we need someone to take care of them instead of all those foreign countries.” Good luck with that.
Point: Romney
Joe Six-pack Index
Obama: Used to smoke, drinks beer, obsessively follows sports
Romney: doesn’t smoke or drink, friends with many NASCAR team owners
Point: Obama
Ignorant Yahoo Index
One word: birthers. Plus all the people who think Obama is a Muslim. That would include a woman from rural Mississippi who told my grandmother during the 2008 election that if Obama was elected she would need a prayer rug because he would convert the country to Islam. The conversion process has apparently been very subtle, but I’ve put a couple of prayer rugs in my Amazon Wishlist just in case.
Point: Romney
Political Consistency Index
Obama: has held more or less consistent political positions throughout his career
Romney: earned porn star Jenna Jameson’s ironic endorsement because he’s the only candidate who has assumed more positions than she has
Point: Obama
Family Values Index
Obama: successful marriage, stable children, no divorce
Romney: successful marriage, stable children, no divorce
Point: tie
Educational Credential Index
Obama: BA, Columbia, JD, Harvard
Romney: BA, Brigham Young, JD/MBA Harvard
Point: tie. Columbia is more highly ranked than BYU, plus Romney was an English major. But Romney has two degrees from Harvard. Ivy league snobs might vote Obama because of the Ivy undergraduate degree.
Unemployment Rate Index
For voters who think the President is responsible for them having a job or not.
Unemployment Rate in 1/09: 7.8%
Unemployment Rate in 8.12: 8.3% (down from high of 10% in 10/09)
Point: tie–not Obama, no evidence on Romney other than unproven faith that cutting taxes always creates more jobs. Hopeless voters might vote for Romney if Obama hasn’t gotten them a job by November.
Persistent Folly Index
Obama: kept thinking Republicans would work with him for the good of the country
Romney: once tried to convert the wine-drinking French to Mormonism
Point: tie, although Romney was young at the time and had to try to convert someone, whereas Obama really should have known better
Youthful Indiscretion Index
For voters who think the child is father of the man.
Obama: some marijuana and cocaine when younger
Romney: allegedly held down younger boy in high school and cut off his hair
Point: tie, depends on whether you’re more offended by youthful experimentation with drugs or youthful experimentation with bullying. I’m not a big fan of either. However, I am conjuring an image of President Obama smoking a joint while Governor Romney gets him in a headlock and tries to give him a noogie. That would be the best Presidential debate performance ever.
So far, they’re tied, with each candidate scoring well on major indices. The deciding factor should probably be social media indices, because if Twitter can start a revolution, then Twitter and Facebook can certainly determine a Presidential Election. How do the candidates stack up?
Facebook Likes
Obama: 28,594,746 likes
Romney: 6,846,537 likes
Point: Obama
Twitter Followers
Obama: 19,741,449 Followers
Romney: 1,114,418 Followers
Point: Obama
Twitter and Facebook don’t lie. I’m calling this one for Obama.
Just dropped “Academic Librarian” from my Google Reader list. Was pretty good up until this post. I can watch MSNBC for this kind of crap.
I’ve never watched MSNBC, so I wouldn’t know, but if you tell me how you’re planning to vote I can score the People Who Get Angry at Mild Political Satire Index.
Here are some possible counter-indices that another me might have replied with:
Ivory tower academic librarians who have never worked a corporate job in their lives Index
OWS Protesters who think living in a park for a month will revolutionize the world Index
Boomer radicals who are still living in the sixties Index
Others? Something about hippies?
This is great!
Hilarious!
For the next election, I propose we cut out the middle men and base electoral college votes directly on social media presence. The only downside is a non trivial chance Justin Bieber may be the next commander in chief.
Good one Mike! It really surprised me how much social media played a role in this year’s election. I even see ads on Facebook relating to my local elections.