How did we get here? Politics is not a Wrestling Match.

Professional wrestling has evolved from a competitive sport to a performing art, focusing on entertainment. It originated in France around 1830 when wrestlers without access to the elite formed traveling troupes to showcase their talent. In the 19th century, American wrestlers began fixing matches to make them shorter, more entertaining, and less physically demanding. As the public learned that matches were predetermined and fixed, wrestlers added melodrama, stunts, and gimmicks to their performances. By the 1920s, professional wrestling was still considered a legitimate sport in the United States, but by the 1930s, it had become associated with modern theatrics. Today, professional wrestling is viewed as entertainment, resembling a scripted television show or acting with stunt doubles.

Not far afoot, today's politics seems like we are watching professional wrestling, entertaining us. When I stream or listen to media channels, they present their slant or side like they are in the ring with those they cover in the news. They are not on the sidelines like Walter Conkite, David Brinkly, or Barbara Waters presenting information or reflection on events or people with credibility and impartiality.

Political rallies are scheduled and held like wrestling matches, well scripted with winners and losers. They blur reality. Being fake is part of the show. Like TV show dramas, they script the full season. Name-calling, lies, exaggerations, costumes, drama, rhetoric, and storylines have replaced real debate of ideas, values, principles, and policies. Then we have polls asking oversimplified questions and inferring who is leading, favored, and representative of millions who are processing the choices, considering the impact and responsibility of voting for candidates who, like wrestlers, are staged with anecdotes. While the theatrics of modern politics may captivate audiences like a Wrestlemania event, we must ask ourselves: Is this the path to building better communities and a stronger nation? ???

It's not about yearning for a bygone era, but rather about evolving beyond the current state of affairs. We need to move past the bluster and rhetoric that seems fueled more by a thirst for power than a genuine desire for progress. ??

True leadership isn't about who can shout the loudest or craft the most sensational soundbite or zings. It's about fostering meaningful dialogue, finding common ground, prioritizing, and working towards solutions that benefit. It's about leading us through change or common threats - and addressing how - as citizens, we all play a role beginning with our vote - and our effort to make the world better than when we inherited it. ??

As thought leaders and influencers, we have a responsibility to elevate the conversation beyond the dogma and fractured information that obscures reality. Our future is no laughing matter, and it deserves more than entertainment value, watching grown adults act out vitriol and drama that has little value. Politics requires thoughtful consideration, empathy, and a commitment to collaborative problem-solving. ??

What steps can we take to shift our political discourse from spectacle to substance? We can't inspire ourselves or others - following politicians who seek power over all else, isolation from responsibility, control over freedom, rhetoric over discovery, chaos over organization, distortion over truth, fear over hope and hate over love. My vote is for people who bring Integrity, character, respect for others, shared values, empathy, compassion, intellect, and guts to lead and work with others with comprimise. That is not a bad word.

None of us are perfect human beings - but to me - what matters now more than ever - is how we trust and learn to work and live with others. We are not hermits in a cave. There are over 6 billion of us. Getting to know our political representatives may be messy and difficult, given the media and interpretations spun by so many trying to keep eye balls and attention on their platforms. We have to sift through the chatter and noise. We have to choose where we put our attention, time and effort - which will expand perspectives and gain new insights or appreciation on things we may have never seen or experienced. We also have to choose what kind of person are we - and who do we want to be aligned with, who to follow and assist. I hope that matters to you as well.??

Let's engage in this crucial conversation and expect our political representatives - who seek our votes - to step out of the wrestling ring - and be the person we favor who shares values and principles of doing what's best for our community and world - not just for a select few who can slant and sway with their influence promoting their thesis of the world. Our communities and our country depend on it. #ThoughtfulPolitics #LeadershipMatters #CommunityFirst #Vote