The Wrong People?

In light of all the "fiscal cliff" talk recently I have been wondering if we have not been sending the wrong people to Washington D.C.

Many of the politicians that end up being elected to public office are lawyers.

Now I am not saying there is anything wrong with lawyers. I am just wondering if this is the best profession from which to choose the men and women that run our government.

Lawyers are essentially wordsmiths. They make a living based on how well they can use and interpret words. So how might things be different inside the beltway if we started electing men and women from other professional backgrounds?

What if we sent more accountants or CFO's? Is it possible more decisions would be made on the fiscal impact on the country rather than the political implications on the next election cycle?

I guarantee that if we started demanding better we would get it, and not just in the form of new candidates the next time around.

Politicians these days are like chameleons, they change to match their environment. And if more people were truly committed more to getting our fiscal house in order than to getting our pet projects funded then even the current elected officials would magically become better at math and basic economics.

But maybe the real problem is that We the People are so engrossed with tabloids and celebrity worship that we don't even want to send the right people. Is it possible that the majority of voters care more about how well a person can deliver a speech than they are about the candidate's resume?

If that is the case; are we electing the wrong people or have we simply become the wrong people?