Full Voices and Hollow Words

tpot. It’s time for the re-up. Syed’s back, and ready to roll with his tpot family.

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If you listen closely, you can hear full voices and hollow words. Both resonate in your head, ringing loudly and coaxing you to act. Should you rise to your feet and cheer the king? Should you sit in silence, your head bowed? Should you wave your fist and let loose rage? Well, whatever you decide to do, you should probably make sure you know what the voices and the words really mean.

I have friends who do not like the mere mention of politics. I am fine with that. As far as I am concerned, though, politics is a major part of not just my life, but our collective life – the life we live together as a whole, as a unit, as a society. I am a member of this nation, and I want to understand and have something to say about the people who are running it.

Which brings me to the jargon-heavy free-for-all CNN and its ilk like to call “Election ‘08.” It is always interesting to watch the ebb and flow of the campaigns; the high points (the faux unity at the conclusion of each Democratic debate which, even just for a brief moment, brings smiles to some of our faces), the ugly lows (Clinton: “Barack’s a Muslim! Barack’s a Muslim! Uhh…don’t vote for him! I’m not desperate!”), and everything in between (insert Ron Paul statement here, which only ends up being heard over the internet anyway). Ahh, the political process – entertaining, in some ways, certainly.

It seems to me that the presidential hopefuls have keyed on the power of language, and that’s nice, in a way. Words get a raw deal nowadays. I sure as hell love ‘em, and in that regard, it’s good to see politicians putting in the effort to make use of them to their advantage.

The American people, though, now have to look beyond the exterior. The candidates are now feeding the public ‘buzz words,’ words that stir an immediate emotion but don’t truly carry much weight (if any). Case in point, the word of the year: Change. Senator Barack Obama has made “change” into something of an all-purpose greeting. Just give his speeches a listen. Obama cries “It’s time for change!” in his bass-heavy voice, and the masses erupt in support. Cool, I’m down for change. But what exactly does that entail?

People know Obama is Mr. Change, but do they know his proposed healthcare plan? Are they aware of his stance on foreign intervention? Can they outline his plans to revive the nation’s struggling economy? Some can, but many can’t – and herein lies the issue. Americans really need to stop falling for buzz words. At Obama’s next speech, if the senator overuses the “change” card, I’d like to see someone in the crowd raise his/her hand and politely ask, “Senator, what exactly do you mean? Could you go over your proposals once again?” Now that is getting the most out of the political process.

And I’m not picking on Barack. In fact, I am rooting for him the most, and I will say that I am pleasantly surprised that covert racism has not undercut him at all thus far. All the candidates are keying off on buzz language, and unfortunately, their audiences are too receptive to it. It is time for change; it is time for the masses to challenge their wannabe leaders, to drain from them the true meaning behind their words to have a firm grasp on what these people will actually do in office.

If you listen at all, you can hear full voices. But if you listen closely, you can hear hollow words, too.

– Syed