Yesterday I reached the point of presidential commercial overdose. It seemed like every other commercial was an ad for a presidential candidate- Thank God for Tivo. I reached a point where I didn’t want to hear another promise of what a candidate is going to do for me when elected. Going by their commercials, I don’t know if there is anything left for the gang to promise me. I’ve heard how they are going to end our reliance on foreign oil, stimulate a depressed economy, cut taxes for the middle class, raise taxes on companies that send jobs overseas, provide universal health insurance, make college affordable, etc., etc., etc.

 

As a Clinton commercial played in the background offering me more promises of what she would do for my vote, I came across this statement from C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity:

 It is easy to think the State has a lot of different objects-military, political, economic, and what not. But in a way things are much simpler than that. The State exists simply to promote and to protect the ordinary happiness of human beings in this life. A husband and wife chatting over a fire, a couple of friends having a game of darts in a pub, a man reading a book in his own room or digging in his own garden-that is what the State is there for. And unless they are helping to increase and prolong and protect such moments, all the laws, parliaments, armies, courts, police, economics, etc., are simply a waste of time.  

I tried picturing a candidate whose only promise is to promote and protect my ability to “chat” with my wife over a fire or read a book in my own room. It just doesn’t work nowadays does it? It doesn’t seem right. We couldn’t handle that. We’ve become far too soft, far too dependent. We want politicians to promise us the maximum when maybe what is needed is only the promise of the minimum. Personally, I think that is more of a commentary on the voters than our politicians. We expect far too much, needing someone to do many of the things we should be doing for ourselves.  One thing is for sure, a candidate who promised us a government that only did the simple things would be the real candidate for change.