What's missing in the upcoming Scott-Crist debate

Chan Lowe toon and blog: Who's missing in the upcoming governor's debate?

Chan Lowe toon and blog: The lesser of three evils in the governor's debate

I was talking to my doctor the other day, and he started discussing politics.

Most doctors in South Florida run you through their offices as though they were car washes, because the health care model in this country is based on volume. Their livelihoods depend on how smoothly their staff can shuttle the greatest number of patients in and out without making them sit so long that fights break out in the waiting room.

My doctors, though, like to relax and take long breaks with me, because they know what I do for a living. It gives them a chance to hold forth on the issues of the day with somebody who does a passable job of pretending he actually knows something. Sometimes, I feel a little guilty about the folks waiting out front, but then, I’m not the one who starts the conversation.

Back to my doctor, whom I consider to be a typical Florida voter. He’s educated and cares somewhat about the quality of life in this state, and he’s about as engaged as a busy professional has time to be — which is to say that he’s finally becoming aware of some of the issues and candidates just as we enter the home stretch.

Of particular interest to him were the governor’s race and medical pot. He didn’t care about the race for attorney general, for our district’s member of Congress, for our state senator, or about proposed state constitutional amendments One and Three.

I’m not saying this is a bad thing. In fact, I found it inspiring. It suddenly occurred to me that the best way to increase voter participation in the great American civic process is to make sure there’s at least one sexy ballot question included in every election. Medical pot worked for us this time, but what about something like making all Florida public beaches clothing-optional? Or allowing Vegas-style gambling in supermarkets? News about such matters quickly percolates among the masses — and before you know it, everybody’s off to the polls to connect the arrows for every ballot item you can think of, even deadly questions like judicial retention votes.

I don’t know why someone hasn’t thought of this before. In the interest of generating more enthusiasm for the 2016 election, I may start a petition to get boom-boom car bass systems included as a legitimate personal threat under Stand Your Ground.