I have long been a fan of George Carlin.  I went to see him when I was maybe 13; my mother took my brother and I to the Paramount to see him.  I think it may have been for my birthday.  Anyway… long-time fan, first-time reader.

I discovered that he had a book called Napalm & Silly Putty recently and though it was quite old by then I bought a used copy and had a go at it.

If you are acquainted with his stand-up material you are going to see a lot here that’s familiar territory.  No harm there.  Intersperced between the familiar you will also find some novel bits and I’d like to share one of those for you now.

It’s not comedy, just pure political philosophy.  It’s titled Don’t Blame the Leaders (You, the People) (p 234).

In the midst of all my bitching, you might’ve noticed that I never complain about politicians.  I leave that to others.  And there’s no shortage of volunteers; everyone complains about politicians.  Everyone says they suck.

But where do people think these politicians come from?  They don’t fall out of the sky; they don’t pass through membrane from a separate reality.  They come from American homes, American families, American schools, American churches, and American businesses.  And they’re elected by American voters.  This is what our system produces, folks.  This is the best we can do.  Let’s face it, we have very little to work with.  Garbage in, garbage out.

Ignorant citizens elect ignorant leaders, it’s as simple as that.  And term limits don’t help.  All you do is get a brand new bunch of ignorant leaders.

So maybe it’s not the politicians who suck; maybe it’s something else.  Like the public.  That would be a nice realistic campaign slogan for somebody: “The public sucks.  Elect me.”  Put the blame where it belongs: on the people.

Because if everything is really the fault of politicians, where are all the bright, honest, intelligent Americans who are ready to step in and replace them?  Where are these people hiding?  The truth is, we don’t have people like that.  Everyone’s at the mall, scratching his balls and buying speakers with lights on them.  And complaining about the politicians.

That’s it. That’s your cheery thought for the day.