8.4 The “Who” of Power

I will talk about the Presidential Campaign in the United States. During the presidential debate last night, the Republican candidate, John McCain defended himself using this phrase: “I am not George Bush!” Although he has been one of Bush’s #1 supporters, he realized that it is too bad for him if people associate him with Bush. With the financial crisis going on, not only American people, but individuals from all over the world see clearly that if Bush hadn’t spent so much money in the war, this financial crisis would not be going on right now.

Although it seems too late to realize that his affiliation with Bush impacts negatively his campaign, McCain tried to convince people that “he has nothing to do with Bush”. People, on the other hand, see that Bush, as maximum authority had enough power to avoid this crisis. And he simply did not. Page 245 of the textbook illustrates that “In certain organizational structures you know exactly who to blame. These people are visible; they are public; and they may have absolute control. To be able to point to someone or some group who is in charge is comforting in a way because you know where the power is coming from and exactly how it’s being exercised.” So by pointing all the fingers to Bush’s direction people somehow feel better. At least people know that this chaotic economic situation in the US, which is impacting many other countries, was originated by wrong decisions made by the current president of the United States.

Garota de Ipanema