Parteipolitik

In the United States we have a two party political system while Germany has a representational democracy where political parties get representation proportionally to the number of votes that party receives. The main difference is that in the United States the specific person we decide to vote for is more significant than a party (because there is a range of opinions within each party), and in Germany and Europe it is the opposite, you are voting more for a party and its platform and the specific person is less significant.

But Germans also separate political discussions into two different types; Kulturpolitik and Parteipolitik. I think this is a valuable differentiation that would help clarify some of the 'political' discussions that go on in the United States. Kulturpolitik is conversation around cultural and educational policies while Parteipolitiks regards specific political parties.

When I was applying for Drury University, back when I was finishing High School, I was a finalist for a full tuition scholarship to the school (I think it was called the Presidential Scholarship). As part of that process, the finalists had a special invitation to the college for a weekend and an interview with one of the top administrators. One of the questions I was asked during that interview was about my political opinion concerning the upcoming 1996 elections. I had never been interested in the seemingly narrow conversation of 'politics' and I told him as much, which probably knocked me out of the running...but, that was the truth and I couldn't really say otherwise. I still think that the question itself was awkwardly inappropriate, as though an answer of Democratic or Republican was more or less 'correct' or at least the answer they were looking for, however, I also wish I had had the vocabulary at the time to explain that I was much more interested in Kulturpoltiks than Partiepolitiks...and have been ever since...until now...

...well, kinda.

Increasingly over the past couple of months, R and I have grown obsessed the with the Presidential Primaries (and eventual Presidential Race) going on in the United States. While we both have had broader interests in Cultural Political issues, especially through the lens of Art History, all along...this is the first time we have felt motivated to closely watch a political race...especially on a daily in-depth basis. There are perhaps many reasons for this; we are unusually excited and inspired by Barack Obama's candidacy, now that we are not in the US (and bombarded with the information everyday) we can enjoy an outside perspective which might make things more interesting in the larger world context, and last but not least...this REALLY IS a important race for the US...considering the decisions that are going to have to be made by the new President, such as Iraq and the falling US economy to name a few examples.

Despite this, I have hesitated in discussing the ongoing political dramas we have been engaged with over the last weeks. I didn't want this blog to digress into specific accounts of how I think Barack is awesome, Hillary has turned nasty, or McCain really just seems to be an inappropriate candidate. However, as time has gone by, I have started realizing that we are not only engaged in the specifics of what political pawns have been played during the course of these campaigns, but also how this race has manifested in a variety of medium. I think now that our engagement is as much about seeing the ways television and especially the internet has changed the ways political discussion exists, and how that has made for a blurry line between the Cultural and Party politics of our time, as seeing what each candidate does with this situation.

As a general example, on Wednesday I was watching a live feed on CNN of Obama giving a speech about Iraq on the 5th anniversary of the invasion. Simultaneously, CNN offered a live feed of the "San Francisco Protests" which was literally a helicopter flying around with a camera zooming between downtown buildings hoping to get a glimpse of some protests...but mostly I just saw a bunch of people going about their daily business. And finally, a bit later, I watched a live feed from my home town of Ozark, MO, where they were showing the swollen Finley River running just under a bridge next to the park I use to play softball at in High School. [side note: While all this was going on, Hillary was in Michigan trying to get the legislature to pass a resolution to hold a re-vote in the state whose delegates were penalized, where she was the only democratic candidate who did not remove her name from the ballot.] The combination of all this information provided a strangely poignant moment, as though my distant and recent past and potential future were being broadcast to me in the present, 5000 miles away in Berlin.

There are also many specific examples of media usage that have been interesting during the course of these campaigns. To simplify them down I thought I would list a couple for each candidate, the ones that are left anyway in what is essentially a three-way race for the White House.

First, Barack Obama has totally ruled the internet. One of the first things that excited me about him was his website. I know that might sound silly, but as someone who has designed and managed website I have an unusually sensitivity to the user friendliness of sites and this one is great. It is also the powerhouse for his ability to inspire grassroots organization. And, since this has been the medium he has ruled...many other web projects have been inspired by this candidate. [Yes We Can video, Obama Works, Obamacycle]

My favorite I already posted www.barackobamaisyournewbicycle.com. I first read about this when scrolling through the main blog on Obama's site (which I do often) and someone posted a link to an article about it (and other sites) in the Washington Post or something, but framed it like it was making fun of Obama. Once I checked out the site I thought it was fantastic and whoever wrote the article must have no capacity for irony. After some further research it turns out that the author was a contributing writer for Wired magazine (R use to work for). His wife was a huge bicycling enthusiast...until she became obsessed with Barack Obama...hence the title. But it doesn't just stop there...there are now many sites who have taken this theme and run with it. No artist could have done better.


Second, I give TV to Hillary. Up until very recently, she was the only candidate regularly on talk shows. She has even been on Saturday Night Live a couple of times. I think the most interesting aspect of this has been the development of the "3 a.m." ad.

First: the original ad put out by the Hillary campaign in Ohio.


Second: within 24 hrs Barack put up a response ad


Third: Hillary appears on a SNL episode in which they parodying the 3 am ad


Fourth and finally?: ironically...the girl in the 3 a.m. is a serious Obama supporter...and created her own 3 a.m. ad



And Finally, John McCain. Except for rumors of his bus "The Straight Talk Express" and that his daughters are avid bloggers on his site...I honestly have not kept up as much with John McCain...of course, he is not really even campaigning right now. But, I did run across this supporter-created video the other day that I just have to share....