Electing or hiring on the basis of religion, race, gender and age

By Al Wyllie
Posted Monday, April 28, 2008

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Chatham County, NC - When it comes to hiring people for jobs, there have been several long struggles by women's suffrage and civil rights movements to attain equality in this country whereby no one is discriminated in seeking employment on the basis of their religion, their gender, their race or their age. And these long struggles continue today across Chatham County and America.

And yet, not only here in Chatham County, but across America, we see candidates for public office asking and voters voting on these bases of discrimination for our elected jobs. For Chatham County Commissioner, we see candidates asking to vote for them because they are a woman. Exit polls in other states show that Americans are voting because the candidate is a woman, a black person or because they are older or younger. If we do not want discrimination in the work place, why are we as voters hiring elected officials on this basis? Shouldn't we be voting on the basis of who is most qualified to do the work?

For those that might think we need someone to look after the interests of women, black people, gay people, old people, immigrants or whomever, I suggest we need someone that looks after the interests of ALL of the people, without discriminating, and is best qualified to do the work that they are being elected to do. I wish at times we had a "None of the Above" selection on the ballot.

Just imagine yourself going on a job interview taking a picture of your family to show the interviewer (as if he is hiring your family), a picture of your church, wearing some civic club hat or club pins draped down your suit coat. Do you really think your interviewer would select you on any of this? Why is it that political candidates think they need to do this when seeking office?

Just tell me why you are best qualified to do the job, PLEASE!