So I'm teaching my public opinion class today and the subject is sophistication and ideology. In the public opinion literature, "sophistication" is associated with increased political participation, higher interest, and a host of other things.
It is also associated with basing candidate evaluations on policy, as opposed to personna.
So it is possible the reason that Sharpton doesn't have policy proposals is because he assumed that black people would make their voting decisions based on personna. Whether he "spoke truth to power." Whether he "stood up for black folks." This makes a great deal of sense to me. I still disagree with it. I assume a great degree of sophistication among the black electorate, far more sophistication than that possessed by their white counterparts. I wonder why Sharpton doesn't assume more?
that sucking sound you hear is the vacuum generated by black representatives who don't give constituents who don't vote or give money the time of day. sharpton swoops in to fill the gap. his "real" supporters, the constituency he's truly gunning for isn't looking for policy. they're looking for a smashmouth.
Posted by: lks at March 18, 2004 07:25 AMMaybe that sucking sound is not because the politicians don't give a damn about pennyless constituents but becuase they can't give that subgroup of constituents what they want. There is a difference between an elected official who has to make deals and an idealogue who can simply throw a few rhetorical Molotov cocktails, get some cheers from folks who like that sort of thing, and go home.
Posted by: walter at March 18, 2004 11:38 AMThe trick is understanding pennies aren't the only way to influnce the political game. The voting ritual must still be undergone and unless this electronic voting this truly suborns the process penniless people can still at minimum disrupt expectations. And people will do ANYTHING to keep things predictable.
That being the case, if the Black communities can be convinced to predictably vote (not vote predictably, mind you, unless it's predictably in our own interest) it will be taken into account. We would be watched and our reactions responded to as participants at best and a force to be compensated for at worst. At whicg point one can start choosing ones reactions to shade people's responses in one direction of another.
Posted by: P6 at March 18, 2004 05:21 PM
I believe it has a lot to do with the kind of black constituency followed Sharpton through his various machinations in NYC. What kind of people are going to show up on the steps of City Hall when Sharpton shows up to speak. Who are those who yell back the loudest when he makes one of his quips against the Man? That's where he gets his strength, the unaffiliated, the downtrodden, the oppressed - blackfolks on the edge of despair who have no other representation in NYC politics.
Posted by: cobb at March 17, 2004 04:00 PM