30 Rock

I watch 30 Rock and note that Tina Fey is liberal while her boss, Alec Baldwin, is conservative; yet they work in the same occupation and spend most of their lives contributing to the same thing. Whatever their ideals, they conform to those values which secure their livelihood.

And this is very much to comedic effect, with both characters frustrated in their attempts to assert themselves within a corporate bureaucracy. Tina Fey's humor is based around the idea that being a successful woman invites repeated failure, especially when you try to do the right thing. Alec Baldwin's character, who fashions himself at the vanguard of capitalism, can prove equally out of step with its objective requirements.

The significance attached to political identity is interesting. As colleagues, they cooperate toward a shared goal that is not their own; in exchange, they earn an income. Yet much is made of the fact that one is Republican -- this is bad -- while the other is not.

This suggests that how one votes is of particular importance while at the same time acknowledging that most of us spend our lives comically failing at what we choose. Why should it matter how we vote if our daily choices amount to failure, as when we most strive to be ourselves?