My criteria

Cong Corrales .

IT will be exactly six days until the midterm elections when this column sees print. So, I would like to share with you, my dear readers, my criteria in choosing the candidates who will land on my final list for the polls, less than a week from now.

But before all that, I think a disclaimer of sorts is in order. First, people tend to forget that journalists, like any law-abiding citizen in this Republic, can also be registered voters. We may not cloud our reports with our personal biases, but it is there. It is a tight-rope act.

So, I just hope my editor-in-chief will not begrudge me of this moment of showing my bias against candidates whom I think will not serve me and my family’s agenda for a better society.

Here goes:

First, it is important to me that the candidate has a good sense of humor. There have been a number of studies into this which points that people with a good sense of humor are likely to be more intelligent than the unfunny people.

Lowri Dowthwaite, a lecturer on psychological interventions in the University of Central Lancashire, wrote that researchers in Austria have discovered that funny people, particularly those who enjoy dark humor, have higher IQs (Intelligence Quotients) than their less funny counterparts. The research also pointed out that it takes cognitive and emotional ability to process and produce humor.

“Their analysis shows that funny people have higher verbal and non-verbal intelligence, and they score lower in mood disturbance and aggressiveness,” Dowthwaite’s article reads.

For me, people who are funny tend not to be uptight or act like an erect male member. This kind of candidates is the kind who refer to themselves in the third person. Like, they are endorsing a brand or something. It seems unnerving to me.

Second, I want a candidate with an above average intelligence. It would even help if the candidate has an IQ north of 120. Like what my boss told me, “I don’t want to be brighter or more intelligent than somebody in Congress.”

As manang Rhona Canoy would say: “People who are three donuts short of a dozen.”

These two criteria are closely related as I have mentioned above. Studies show that when you experience a positive emotional state, like laughing, it increases the production of dopamine in your brain. Dopamine opens up the learning centers of our brains. As a result, funny and intelligent people are more flexible and creative in their thinking process. This, in turn, aid them to be better at solving complex and daunting problems.

Unfortunately, most of the incumbents in both houses of Congress are as dim as the gaslights in the houses in rural areas. Let’s not add insult to injury by voting dumb senator wannabes. Instead, let’s help restore the luster of our Republic’s Congress.

Lastly, I want empathy back in our legislative branch and our local government units. As we have experienced these past three years, we have had enough of impunity and negativity in the executive branch.

Performance coach and human behavior professor Melody Wilding writes: “In a busy, complex, stressful world, empathy is the glue that holds relationships together. Whether you want to connect with your colleagues, customers, or children, you need to master the art of empathetic communication.”

Wilding defines empathy as the ability to detect other people’s emotions and understand their perspective. “When people feel accepted and validated, it builds trust,” she adds. Wouldn’t it be better if we have empathic politicos as opposed to having polarizing ones?

This administration has been selling fear and hatred like pancakes. To me, it is starting to sound like a “folk” song — where our President has been cursing: Folk this and folk that. Personally, I think his brand of semantics, or the lack of it, is getting kind of tiring to the ears, hearts, and our brains. It has contributed in the general dumbing down of our country. Don’t contribute to that kind of society, please.

So, there you have it. My three criteria in choosing a candidate this coming election — a sense of humor, intelligence, and empathy. Now that we have the opportunity to put a semblance of balance in the three branches of government, we should use our votes wisely. See you at the polling places.