Three Anonymous Seconds with Al Gore

I'll probably be commenting on Al Gore's new book, The Assault on Reason, as I read it, because the excerpts intrigued me, and I've found the first bit I've read to be thought-provoking. Overall, I think I agree with Gore's thesis--I would have said that reason was more than assaulted in the public sphere--more like stabbed, bleeding, and left for dead--but I suspect I may not agree with him on some of the root causes and therefore solutions. But not having read very far yet, too soon to say. I am at least pleased to be reading something that has me wanting to scribble notes in the margin, look things up, have discussions and arguments. Ah, brain activity. So refreshing.

I find it ironic that virtually every article about Gore anywhere--New York Times, Washington Post, Time, etc.--cannot fail to mention either his weight or something to do with his eating. Several have used it as a barometer of whether he's likely to run for president (gee, didn't know it was like a prize fight, where you have to weigh in). Ironic that someone who is trying to talk about substance over image is constantly being discussed in terms of this one physical aspect that has nothing to do with anything, really. (And if it's getting old for me as a reader to see this constant discussion of Gore's weight, it must be damned tedious for him.)

And so I will not mention a word about his weight or physical appearance at the Barnes and Noble book signing Friday. I will say that he spoke for about fifteen minutes at the outset about the themes of the book, basically revisiting the points he'd been making on TV and in print interviews but at a little more length than a five- or seven-minute slot on a morning show or Jon Stewart would permit (again, irony alert: reduce your message about the problems of sound-bite politics to a sound bite). His passion about his message was clear. The "recovering politician" was present, too: before he entered, he passed by the back of the room, and as everyone turned to snap photos, etc., he clicked on the smile and wave, and later as he moved through the process of signing hundreds of books in an assembly-line setup that moved like clockwork while guaranteeing no one person spent more than 2-3 seconds in his presence, he greeted each person with "Hi, how are you?" and a quick glance up as another book was slid under his hand and then was slid away from him to be replaced with another, and another person he never really saw stood for a demi-moment in front of him. Not robotical, but still as if programmed to faux-connect. I guess old habits die hard.

I used my 2-3 seconds to say that I thought he should not run for president. (Gore '08 stickers and buttons were handed out in the crowd, and people were collecting signatures on a Draft Gore petition in the line.) In my view, if he runs, he has no choice but repeating the same few, brief points and analogies and will seldom have any more than five minutes of anyone's time or attention to make his points. In between which, people will gloss over any substantive points he attempts to make in favor of someone else's snappily worded attack, or maybe just worrying about whether he looks fat or stiff or whatever. Or, he can be the impassioned guy who gets to make an entire argument from start to finish, who has the ear of corporate and political leaders not because he's trying to sell them influence or buy their support but because they actually want to hear what he has thought out. Al Gore can make a stronger case against sound-bite politics by declining to be a part of it. One might say he could change the system by being a part of it . . . but I think he's tried that, and not succeeded. Meantime, as a private citizen he is more popular and more listened-to, not least because he's not trying to buy our votes. So I hope he doesn't run, and I said so.

Of course at that signing, my view lost the popular vote.