He Who Influences the Thought of His Times Influences The Times That Follow

"He who influences the thought of his times influences the times that follow" - Elbert Hubbard 

Election times are near, and it got me thinking. How do we really choose who to vote for? Can we effectively look at policies objectively? Candidates use psychological tactics in attempt to influence voters' thoughts, and often times, voters fall for it. 


One way to get more support is to make the opponent look bad. This is possible by using push polls. When surveys are given out, a hypothetical question is phrased in a way that fabricates negative information about one candidate. Push polls can heavily influence push polls. To find out more information or see some examples, visit The Yale Scientific Magazine.


There are other factors that influence voters too. Unfortunately, some are a bit shallow. Psychology Today claims that some voters choose the candidate based on physical appearance. When people for one country given a pictures of two candidates from another and told to choose one to be the leader, people often chose the candidate that was winning, even though they knew nothing about the two candidates. It turns out everyone is a little more superficial than they would like to admit. 

People, especially in America, also vote for a specific candidate solely because of their party affiliation. Americans live in the world of Democrats vs. Republicans. Deep down, a die hard democrat might want to vote for a republican candidate one year, but can't because they feel obligated to stick with their party.


American's are privileged to have the opportunity to vote. Not only should every American make the effort to vote, but they should vote honestly as well. People should spend a little effort learning about the policies and trying to decide which candidate to vote for based on that instead of party lines. As good as that sounds, it isn't likely to happen


The truth is, no matter how much we may want to believe it, we are influenced by many things. Campaigns, surveys, physical appearances, parties and many other things can change the way we vote. If people could vote objectively, many elections would have turned out differently.