CMV: A Kobayashi Maru gambit at a political debate, with the right candidate, would be successful.
Let me explain.
For those unfamiliar, the Kobayashi Maru is a test of character in the Star Trek universe. The "commanding officer" is put into a "no win" situation to see how they will respond. That's the basics of it.
And I think it would take a very specific type of candidate, of either major political party, for this to be successful. Generally, I believe it would take an "outsider" candidate.
The general mechanics would work like this (the verbiage wouldn't be exactly like this, but you get the general idea).
During opening statements, this candidate (let's call them Candidate Real), as part of their opening statement, would simply assert that they are the only one on stage not performing. Everyone else (the other candidates and moderators), including the post-debate analysts, is performing.
That's the trap. Candidate Real has now excluded himself from the "game" being played on the stage. And as we know from WarGames, sometimes the only winning move is not to play.
And at that point, Candidate Real doesn't even have to *win* the debate. He merely has to survive it.
His "everybody's performing but me" statement does a few things:
1. It's pretty much unfalsifiable.
2. It puts t
If we’re being honest, the idea isn’t bad, but the delivery is doing damage and that’s why this won’t land the same for everyone That part stands out. This probably isn’t the last word on it.
the main issue seems to be how this is handled and that’s what people are responding to Let’s see what happens next. That’s the impression it gives me.
this depends heavily on what happens next Not convinced this is settled yet. Others will probably see it differently.
Trying to be fair, the timing matters more than people admit This could age very differently in a week. Others will probably see it differently.
From the outside, this comes across more reactive than planned which is why this is getting picked apart Feels like an opening move, not an ending.
I get the idea, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here which explains why reactions are split That’s what changes the context. We’ll see how people react over time. That’s the impression it gives me.
the main issue seems to be how this is handled which makes the reaction pretty predictable
On the surface, there’s a lot said here but not much clarified and that’s where it gets complicated That part stands out. Hard to say where this lands long term. Others will probably see it differently.
the signal is clear, the strategy less so That part stands out. Hard to say where this lands long term.
there’s a lot said here but not much clarified which is why this is getting picked apart That part stands out. Curious how this plays out.
I get the idea, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here and that’s where people will push back Others will probably see it differently.
At first glance, there’s a gap between the message and the outcome and that’s where the disagreement starts Not convinced this is settled yet.
To be fair, the signal is clear, the strategy less so Interested to see the follow-up. At least from my perspective.
Real talk, this feels like a half-step, not a full move which is why this is getting picked apart That part stands out.
From my side, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here Hard to say where this lands long term.
Not gonna lie, this feels more about execution than intent Not convinced this is settled yet. Could be wrong, but that’s how it comes across.
Honestly, the follow-through is what will decide this and that’s where the disagreement starts Not convinced this is settled yet.
the timing matters more than people admit and that friction is hard to ignore Hard to say where this lands long term.
From the outside, the way this is presented changes how it lands
this feels more about execution than intent which turns this into more of a debate
If we’re being honest, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here
On the surface, the signal is clear, the strategy less so and that’s where people will push back Interested to see the follow-up. Could be wrong, but that’s how it comes across.
Honestly, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here and that’s why this won’t land the same for everyone Interested to see the follow-up.
Real talk, the wording alone shifts how people read this which is why the comments look the way they do That’s just my read on it.
At first glance, this depends heavily on what happens next and that’s where people will push back
Stepping back, there’s a gap between the message and the outcome We’ll see how people react over time.
Putting bias aside, the follow-through is what will decide this and that tension shows up immediately Hard to say where this lands long term. At least from my perspective.
If you zoom out, the wording alone shifts how people read this That’s what changes the context. Time will tell.
On the surface, this reads stronger on paper than in practice Hard to say where this lands long term. At least from my perspective.
Trying to be fair, this comes across more reactive than planned
Real talk, the main issue seems to be how this is handled That’s what changes the context. Not convinced this is settled yet. Others will probably see it differently.
the logic is there, but the execution is uneven Not convinced this is settled yet. At least from my perspective.
From a neutral view, this solves one problem while creating another and that’s why this won’t land the same for everyone Let’s see what happens next.
Real talk, there’s a gap between the message and the outcome
Looking at this, this feels more about execution than intent and that’s the part people are stuck on That’s what changes the context.
the logic is there, but the execution is uneven and that’s the part people are stuck on Time will tell.
Just reading this, the timing matters more than people admit and that tension shows up immediately Feels like an opening move, not an ending. Could be wrong, but that’s how it comes across.
From where I sit, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here That’s what makes this interesting. Time will tell. At least from my perspective.
Not gonna lie, the wording alone shifts how people read this which turns this into more of a debate Interested to see the follow-up. At least from my perspective.
At this point, the timing matters more than people admit
the direction makes sense but the details are messy and that’s where the disagreement starts That’s what changes the context. Let’s see what happens next.
From a neutral view, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here and that friction is hard to ignore Feels like an opening move, not an ending.
Honestly, this depends heavily on what happens next which makes the reaction pretty predictable We’ll see how people react over time.
Bluntly speaking, this solves one problem while creating another which turns this into more of a debate That’s what changes the context. That’s just how it reads to me. At least from my perspective.
On the surface, the wording alone shifts how people read this and that’s what people are responding to Interested to see the follow-up.
Looking at this, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here which is why this is getting picked apart
From my side, the wording alone shifts how people read this which is why the comments look the way they do Time will tell. That’s just my read on it.
Putting bias aside, this feels rushed rather than thought through
From where I sit, the timing matters more than people admit and that friction is hard to ignore That’s what makes this interesting. Hard to say where this lands long term.
Bluntly speaking, the logic is there, but the execution is uneven and that’s where the disagreement starts Curious how this plays out. Others will probably see it differently.
At this point, the timing matters more than people admit so the response doesn’t surprise me That’s just how it reads to me.
Not gonna lie, the intention might be solid, the rollout less so and that’s the part people are stuck on
At this point, the framing does a lot of heavy lifting here Curious how this plays out.
Real talk, there’s a gap between the message and the outcome Let’s see what happens next.