It's All About the Ice Cream

This is from an e-mail forward I got today, cleaned up a little for grammar and clarity. I doubt it's a true story, but the analogy is a good one.

The most eye-opening civics lesson I’ve ever had was while teaching third grade. The presidential election was heating up and some of the children showed an interest, so I decided we would have an election for a class president. We would choose our nominees, they would each make a campaign speech and the class would vote.

To simplify the process, candidates were nominated by other class members. We discussed what kinds of characteristics these students should have. We got many nominations, and from those, Jamie and Olivia were picked to run for the top spot.

The class did a great job in their selections. Both candidates were good kids. The day arrived when they were to make their speeches, and Jamie went first. He had specific ideas about how to make our class a better place. He ended by promising to do his very best. Everyone applauded. He sat down, and Olivia came to the podium. Her speech was concise. She said, "If you will vote for me, I will give you ice cream." She sat down.

The class went wild. "Yes! Yes! We want ice cream." A discussion followed. How did she plan to pay for the ice cream? She wasn't sure. Would her parents buy it or would the class pay for it? She didn't know. The class really didn't care. All they were thinking about was ice cream. Jamie was forgotten, and Olivia won by a landslide.

Every time Barack Obama opens his mouth he offers ice cream, and fifty percent of America reacts like nine year olds. They want ice cream. The other fifty percent know they're going to have to feed the cow.