Don’t Koch this up Glenn. When I first saw this quote about voting I was immediately put off when I saw it was by ‘Koch’. Then I realised it was by an accomplished politician rather than the fossil fuel friendly brothers.

Here’s the quote:

“If you agree with me on 9 out of 12 issues, vote for me. If you agree with me on 12 out of 12 issues, see a psychiatrist.”

He’s not one of THE Koch brothers (look up “How the Koch brothers built the most powerful rightwing group you’ve never heard of”).

Ed Koch was Mayor of New York City from 1978 to 1989. I’ve done a little reading up on him and in the complex and messy world of politics he seems to have been someone who inspired even if all the calls he made weren’t welcome. I understand one of his other famous behaviours was to ask people when he was out and about “how’m I doing’?” with a genuine interest in listening and reflecting.

Sounds quite refreshing doesn’t it?

So – as the manifestos lie before us and we weigh up what is on offer consider this. One approach is to see things we disagree with and fixate on them at the expense of recognising things on offer we do agree with. The other approach is to (i) recognise which manifesto offers enough good things to persuade us that the party is in the right ball park for our liking; and then (ii) consider which party if elected would have the maturity to ask us ‘how’re we doing?’ and be open minded to evolving their approach accordingly.