In a recent diary, Dr. Teeth vented his amazement over Ted Cruz's recent blabathon in the Senate. I can certainly understand his feelings. After all, Cruz is allegedly highly educated, all Ivy League, and then this. It does make one wonder. What I found equally intriguing and entertaining was the follow-on discussion about Cruz, and how he really is (or may not be), as well as Ivy-League education generally and specifically, as some fellow alumni stepped up to give more of insider's view of that world. One is certainly left with the feeling that things are perhaps not quite as they appear. Follow me below the fold to see why I think they are exactly as they appear.
Given that we can't look inside other people's heads, we don't know what's going on in there, a fact which I am thankful each and every day. Consequently, I'm a pretty big by-their-fruits-you-shall-know-them kind of guy. Yes, there were those commenters who know Cruz personally or almost so and pointed out that he really is a sharp cookie and talented debater. There were those who wanted to call the whole Ivy-League reputation system into question, and given the number of Ivy Leaguers crawling out of the woodwork onto the American political stage, it does make one wonder. There were others who simply cannot believe that he has any kind of reputation for intelligence and rhetorical skills at all, and they certainly have a case. We also had our suspicions confirmed that a good number of people make it into Ivy-League schools because their parents had gone there, so they had a leg up on admissions, and that given that you're paying a lot of money to go there anyway, a way can be found to get you through. As one commenter put it, it is much harder to get in than flunk out. Fair enough. That's how that game in that league is played.
If we simply step back for a moment and look at the event, as objectively as the situation may allow, what do we see. A United States Senator takes the floor, talks for 21 hours without really saying anything. I mean, he never addressed the bill in question in any substantial way, we know now what he likes to wear at times, that he likes White Castle hamburgers, what books he read as a child, that he doesn't understand Dr. Seuss, and that the Affordable Care Act is somehow akin to Nazi Germany. Drivel, hyperbole, ramblings, misinterpretation, and pure and simple attention-getting. As any number of commenters noted, he's bucking for a down-the-road presidential bid. And what could be more compelling than a single-handed, Wendy-Davis inspired (?), Mr.Smith-goes-to-Washington attempt to save us from ourselves?
Let's say he is grandstanding for a run on the presidency. I'm going to assume for the sake of argument that Sen. Cruz is at least of normal intelligence, for he does get around everyday more or less on his own. He's allowed out with supervision and he hasn't really hurt anybody. My question is, to whom is he making his pitch? His constituency? Texans in general? A certain demographic in the population? I'm afraid there is a segment of the American voting populace to whom this kind of "talk" appeals. They'd probably like nothing more than a Palin-Cruz ticket in '16. I think we need to stop for a moment and consider what this means for the rest of us.
The mere fact that he could be banking on gaining ground in this way is disconcerting to say the least. What does it tell us that someone allegedly as bright at he is would stoop to this level of presentation and argumentation? He must think there is a significant number of these folks out there to help raise his boat in the presidential regatta. Personally, I find it an insult, to my personal dignity and my own innate intelligence, because nonsense is nonsense to me, regardless of who is spouting it. But he must think that there are plenty of folks out there who would find this good. And a lot did, and a lot found ways to rationalize his behavior, and he got lots and lots of attention (including the attention I'm giving him now). That, I believe, is cause for general concern.
There are those of you, I am sure, who will say that this is just the way things are. This is what we have to live with, but what does that say about the rest of us if that is the case? What does it mean for the rest of us that this is the case? Don't you think it just might be time to get a little more involved? In the today's world of global communication and with English being the de facto lingua franca of the Internet, Mr. Cruz's antics are no longer an isolated phenomenon by a wannabe president, the person who is arguably the most powerful person in the world. Let me assure you, the concern has spread wider than many of you may think.
What we're left with is either a very bright, intelligent man acting like an idiot to attract support, or perhaps we simply have an idiot acting like an idiot in public. Either way, it's bad news for the rest of us. To me, the motivation doesn't matter all that much. I mean, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck …