A Question of Values

I like John Edwards, I really do. I think he is a fine person who pulled himself up by the bootstraps and made a lot of money fighting for people who could not afford to fight for themselves unless a trial lawyer would take their case on contingency. I like some of his ideas too. But he is not Presidential material. Perhaps after serving 8 years as Gore’s VP he would have been, but he does not have enough experience in a large organization or a bureaucracy to be effective as President. Neither do Hillary, or Obama.

Then there is the hair thing. Edwards has a couple of problems. One he is a rich guy, and he acts like it. Or at least spends like it. $400 on a hair cut is beyond the sensibility of middle and lower class Americans. It is indicative of his larger sensibility, or lack thereof.

Democrats have a problem. They gravitate toward style and looks too much. They like pretty candidates, because they want candidates who look good on television and are therefore “elect able”. Democrats tend not to look so much at personal values when choosing candidates. Nor experience and competence, as the current crop of "front runners"demonstrates.

Unfortunately for Democrats, the majority of the electorate does pay attention to values. The value of a $400 hair cut is something I might appreciate in my trial Lawyer. Someone who is trying to win a multi million dollar settlement. But not in a chief executive who has more to worry about then how he looks to a jury. In a President I want to see some evidence of frugality. Some evidence that he or she will not spend our money willy nilly, like it is the play money of their previously outrageous income as a private citizen.

You know what? I bet Edwards could find a hair stylist that would charge him $30 for what he paid $400. It would be just as good too. Generic, not a name brand. I buy store brands to save money. That is a value I appreciate. Saving money is a value essential in our next President. It is a value Edwards seems not to hold, or even understand.