Good Times, You Know, Never Seemed So Good
Caroline Kennedy Proves She Can, You Know, Spout Bromides
If she is picked by Governor Patterson to become the next Senator from New York State, Caroline Kennedy has asserted she “wouldn’t be beholden to anybody” — including Mayor Bloomberg and, presumably, her eighth-grade English teacher.
Dropping enough “you knows” to qualify for honorary Valley Girl status, Caroline proved her best shot to get appointed to anything may be if they decide to film a sequel to the movie, Clueless.
As far as why she should be appointed to be a Senator from a major state, Caroline offers up the the banalities that we’re at, you know, an important point in our history and that she’s, you know, at an important point in her life.
While having the self-importance to suggest that being at an important point in your life should make people consider you for public office certainly shows a Senatorial level of self-aggrandizement, most experienced Senate candidates usually offer something a little more substantial as a reason for being qualified to be a member of the highest legislative body in the country.
If being at an important point in your life was a qualification for being appointed a Senator, we’d have to consider everyone in the state who was about to get married, going back to school for their degree or had backstage passes to meet the Jonas Brothers.
Caroline prattles on to say she, you know, thinks there’s an economic crisis. Although, it’s unclear whether this means she really believes it or is still awaiting more evidence before she’s really sure that a 40% drop in the stock market and record home foreclosures actually constitutes “a crisis.”
Ms. Kennedy adds that she loves New York, no one can sit this one out, a stitch in time saves nine and we all need to give 110%. Or something to that effect.
The debate over whether someone is “qualified” to be a Senator is a lot like having a debate over whether someone is “qualified” to wear a mullet. The bar isn’t really set all that high if you stop to take a look at some of the knuckleheads who have accomplished the feat in the past.
About the best thing you can say about Ms. Kennedy’s bid to become Senator is that it offers the opportunity for some truly awesome political feng shui.
There would be a such a harmonious balance to the country by having a cliche-spouting Republican governor in Alaska and a platitude-emitting Democratic Senator in New York.
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If nothing else, we’ve proved eloquence isn’t genetic…
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For those keeping score at home… Ms. Kennedy drops 53 “you knows” inside of five minutes during the cringe-inducing audio.
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Interesting opinions. Determining qualifications for positions of power (whether for organizations or political establishments) is rather complex. Executive selection should take into consideration responsibilities, competencies, and experiences (just to name a few). And, just because there are a few individuals dominating the airwaves whom are not of high-quality, doesn’t mean we should lower our standards to that level to allow more of the same to infiltrate (i.e. it’s not a valid excuse to say “look at who is there,” because they might not have been selected properly). I’m not holding an opinion one way or another on Kennedy’s specific case, I’m just trying to lay a little groundwork for the discussion.
Well said, Aleksandar. I would quibble only with the idea that the qualifications for businesses and political establishments are anywhere near the same.
Business leadership should accrue to those with ability. Political leadership, most frequently, falls to those whose primary ability is the ability to throttle those with ability.