Rod Miller: Advice for Politicians – Think first, then speak

Twice in the past couple of months we have seen politicians suffering serious political blowback for posting memes to social media. One was a lawmaker, and the other a mayor. One was from the left, the other from the right. Two loud mistakes.

Casper Mayor Bruce Knell and Laramie Rep. Karly Provenza each violated a fundamental axiom of human communication, that being “engage brain before opening mouth.”

Lord knows what prompted them to hit the “send” button before considering the possible consequences of their post. Maybe they thought they would score easy points with their base. Perhaps they thought their chosen meme would be code only understood by those “in the know”.

It’s more likely they didn’t think much at all, relying instead upon an appeal to the part of the reader that doesn’t think much either. This is not just confined to politicians.

A meme or emoji posted on social media is a way to reduce a complex problem and the mental rigor required to grasp it down to a smiley, a flame, or a turd. It is visceral not intellectual.

In today’s world, information comes at us from every angle, from limitless sources and at warp speed. It’s no surprise that our minds struggle to keep up with the rapid-fire flood of information.

Here’s a case in point. This column was written longhand or typed using an old upright typewriter in the year I’d been born. The column would then be sent to a proofreader, and an editor. Then, it would be sent to a typesetter or platemaker. From there, it would be sent to the layout desk, and finally, to the printer.

Once on paper, a paperboy on a bike would toss it on your porch or in your flowerbed, and you’d wander out in slippers to pick the newspaper up and read it with your morning coffee. The entire process could take up to four days.

If something in my column made you spew coffee through your nose, you’d need to respond by writing a letter. You would (hopefully), gather your thoughts and write a succinct response. Then you’d need to seal, address and put a stamp on the letter.

The next day, the mailman would collect the letter and deliver it to a newspaper. Your response would then follow the same procedure as my column before being published in print. It would take at least two more days for the process to be completed.

You can estimate a week to go between the time I write my column and when you respond. One week of thinking and writing will close the intellectual circle. 

Today, the entire process can be completed in a matter of seconds with a few keystrokes and a snarky emoji or meme.

The internet age is a hyper-drive one. There’s scarcely time to absorb one idea before the next one bombards us. The human mind is unable to keep up.

Almost like a defense mechanism against this onslaught of information, we dash of a couple of ill-chosen words or an inarticulate image, just to prove to the rest of the world that we’re keeping up, that we are engaged with the world around us.

We’re all guilty of such mental laziness, present company included.

But we should also expect more from our elected representatives. We trust people with election certificates to carefully consider the issues we face, to think of solutions and to consider their consequences.

Sure, politicians enjoy the same First Amendment freedom of expression as we all. It’s fair to assume that politicians will give more thought to their words and actions, given the impact they have on the entire political body.

The lesson is over.

Rod Miller can be reached at: [email protected]