Democracy is a glorious thing. The right to vote is something that people around the world are willing to give their lives for. However, it seems that the United States’ bastardization of the voting process has devalued this right and turned the race for leader of the free world into nothing more than a glorified pissing contest.
According to Yahoo, the most money that is allowed to be spent by a Canadian political party is just north of $21 million, due to federal regulations. While this is a large sum of money, it is understandable due to much of the costs that are incurred (flights, accommodations, salary of staff).
However, this figure pales in comparison to the amount of money that was spent by the Yanks. A staggering $195 million was spent on TV ads alone for the 2008 presidential campaign. This spending is gross overkill. Much of this money goes towards degrading attack ads and other forms of mudslinging.
I believe that it is time for the US government to step in and set regulations and stop elections from becoming more of a popularity contest. At this point, it seems that whoever has the deepest pockets wins. No longer does policy, knowledge or charisma matter, but rather how deep you’re willing to dive into your pocketbook.
