You, The Internet, and Data

Back in the late 1990's, when the World Wide Web was in it's infancy, I was in university. Everyone was so excited about how the internet was going to bring a voice to those who have not been heard in the past. It was the democratization of information. We were going to be free and out from under the thumb of the man.

Although I could see this possibility, I also was concerned that without the editorial gatekeepers, holding writers to standards, and ensuring, to the best of their knowledge, the facts they printed were true, we would be in a world of mis-information.

Irrespective if you believe that I had that thought back in the 90's, I think we can agree that the internet has vast swaths of mis-information today.

The latest uproar is the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica use of personal data to change hearts and minds in elections. This is concerning to me but not because they used data from Facebook. I'm concerned that people are so weak-minded that they are swayed by these campaigns. 

There are a lot of factors at play. People don't seek out dissenting opinions anymore. They fall victim to confirmation bias. When they hear what they want to hear they go with it. The problem is people are lazy and are taking the comfortable way out. American voter turnout is so low the path to victory is no longer providing the most appealing platform, the path to victory is motivating the base to actually show up and vote. Politicians don't need to change minds, they need to get like minded people to actually vote.

Let me say this again.

Politicians don't need to change minds, they need to motivate like minded people to actually vote.

This reduces the requirement to develop a platform that is good for all citizens. This encourages stove-piping and not talking to the other side. The lower the voter turnout is, the bigger problem this becomes. This is something that we need to fix.

The good news is we can fix it. The number one thing every citizen can do is vote. The closer a nation gets to full voter turnout, the less a "get out the vote" campaign matters. If you go from motivating your base to talking to the entire population your story will significantly change.

The second thing every citizen can do is seek out people who are different than you and spend meaningful time with them. Don't simply find out what they believe but why they feel it is the best way to do things. It may be frustrating at times but you will grow as a person.

The third thing you can do is questions the hypothesis and source of everything you read. The editorial oversight of the days of old are gone. Nobody is fact-checking for you. Is the source reliable? What is their motivation for creating this content? What are their political leanings? What have they said about other issues? Information on the internet is like advice, it's generally free and you don't have to use it.

The problem we are faced with is not a data analytics company using data about you to figure out how to talk to you. The problem is too many people are being mindless and not questioning what they are consuming.

America Would Be in Better Shape if John McCain Won the 2008 Election

First, I have to apologize for the blatant click-bait title.

Second, I have to admit that I don't know if what I am proposing would have played out, but I see it as a very plausible outcome.

On the first anniversary of the inauguration of Donald J Trump as President of the United States of America, I am taking some time to think about an alternate possibility.

If John McCain would have beat Barack Obama in 2008, I think he would have been a pretty good President of the United States of America. He is well liked, and you can see that he genuinely cares about advancing the national interest. He has a vision of how he believes his nation should operate. In that vein, it is reasonable that he would have run again in 2012. 

In 2012, if Obama had lost to McCain in 2008, I think Hillary Clinton would have secured the nomination. I also think that McCain would have done a good enough job that would have been re-elected.

Moving forward to 2016. John McCain would have served his two terms and would not be eligible for re-election. Secondly, a Republican will have been President for sixteen years, it would have been time for change, no matter how good a job McCain had done. So, after taking a cycle off, and after a loss by Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama would have won the nomination for a second attempt and would be President of the United States today, likely to be re-elected in 2020 and serve until January 2025.

I also have a second course of action which I believe is possible and is much better than the current situation in The White House.

After four years, being an older gentleman, John McCain doesn't run for a second term, and the Democratic Party gives Barack Obama a second chance against, what most likely would be, Mitt Romney. Barack Obama wins in 2012 and wins re-election in 2016, and would be President today.

I'm not saying America made a mistake in 2008. Nine years ago, nobody could have predicted the pickle America has put itself in. This is simply an alternate scenario that I think would have been a much better reality that what we are enduring today.