Romney's Pathway to Heaven

Why did Romney pick Ryan?  The positives are obvious.  He is a fixed, and seemingly serious, picture which cannot be erased on an etch-a-sketch.  This adds gravitas to the ticket, particularly on the issue of deficit reduction.  He is loved by the base in an election that may hinge more on  turnout than convincing an ever dwindling number of undecided voters.  He puts Wisconsin in play.

But the negatives are equally obvious.  The Ryan budget is something that the President can, and will run against.  The election becomes less of a referendum on the President, and more of a choice between two tickets.  The desired message of jobs and the economy becomes diluted by discussions of Medicare vouchers.  Ryan's social values are another dangerous diversion, which has become obvious, with the Akin detour.

The answer lies with Romney since, if media sources are to be believed, he made the decision himself, over the initial opposition of his staff.  The answer is what I call the pathway to heaven.  We all want to think well of ourselves.  In doing that we tend to over value those things we are good at, and under value qualities we lack.  An analytical person might think more highly of people who are logical than those who are intuitive.

Romney is a number cruncher, and highly values that skill in Ryan.  The Mormon church is central to Romney.  He could not pick another Mormon, but Ryan also strongly values his church.  But the key is that behind the often arrogant sneer, and the fake laugh, Romney is, and always has been, a very handsome man.  Not surprisingly, all of his spokes people, both men and women, are quite attractive.  He over values good looks, so Ryan's six pack abs were the clincher.  With hopefully outdated thinking, Romney believes that his deficit with women will be reduced by Ryan's appearance and that younger voters will identify with his youthful vigor.