Politicians and diapers: Why the president should be changed often

Whenever my dad finds something truly old and nasty in the back of the cupboard or fridge, he'll pull it out, dust it off, and announce that, "These (canned figs, moldy carrots, etc.) must be from the Truman administration!" I'm not really sure when that was, but I know it was a long time ago, before I was born, and before my dad was even born. Produce has a shelf life, and so do many other things.
In June, Penny's preschool went on a field trip to the countryside. The actual title of the place was, "The new countryside learning center" or something. It was essentially a big park with fountains and sculptures, some chickens and peacocks in cages, and a couple museums to check out. One museum had farm tools, old and new. There was a museum near the front called something like, "Chairman Mao's Red Army" or something like that. I'm kind of sad we didn't get a chance to visit it.
Back in the days of the Cultural Revolution (~1966-76), Chairman Mao sent students, intellectuals, and I think basically everyone out to the countryside to "learn from the peasants." It was forced hard labor, and from what I've read and heard, it was all pretty inane. People were sent to the Gobi desert in the middle of winter to dig under the sand until they found clay. Then they were to cultivate the clay and plant melons. In the desert. In the clay. In the winter. Um.... yeah. Stupid. They eventually lessened the emphasis on learning from the peasants, but I get the feeling that this June's field trip was essentially the modern-day learning from the peasants.
Why I'm mentioning this: One of the signs I saw in the "countryside learning center" showed portraits of all the Chinese presidents. There was Chairman Mao, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin, and Hu Jintao. Period. That's all. I checked on wikipedia, and there's more to the story than these four, but essentially, these were the guys holding all the power (and I do mean ALL THE POWER) from 1949 to the present day. Four. 1949 was the middle of the Truman administration.
Can you name all the presidents from Truman until now? I can't, but let me try:
Hmmm, Truman, obviously. Eisenhower. Kennedy. Johnson. Ford. Carter. Reagan. Bush, Sr. Clinton. Bush, Jr. Obama. And one more.
See, I can't even name all the presidents we've had in that time period! (Nixon! I forgot Nixon. Sorry.) But my point is, there were a lot. And that's how it should be. Politicians are like diapers. They should be changed, often, and for the same reasons.
A lot of people I talk to here in China are pretty interested in our upcoming election. They don't have anything like this here. There is just one party, and the way you would become president is to work your way up in the party. I guess there are elections for some positions, but only party members can vote for them. And they all know who's going to get the position anyway.
The fact that I could run for president in a few years is completely unthinkable here in China. (Okay, so it's unthinkable to me, too. But theoretically. I could run. I would't win, but I could run. And that's cool.)
People here like to talk about how good looking the presidential candidates and their wives are. Based on everything people have talked to me about, I have no doubt that if Chinese people got to vote in this election, that would be the #1 priority. And I know that some people in America also do that. But this time around, we'll get a handsome president, either way, so maybe people will look at a few of the issues. I hope so.
Everyone knows that government leaders here in China are insanely corrupt, but there's nothing the average person can do about it. In fact, if the average person thought that (as a random, non-Shenyang-specific example) there should be more trees or more parks in a city, there's no avenue for a person to address that problem. The people have no rights, and the government has all power. And it chooses its own president... once every 20 years or so.
I'm absolutely sick of the American election already-- even with one more month left. I'm tired of how it polarizes people into making statements like, "No one with a brain would ever agree with _____," and, "_____(insert politician's name) is going to send our country straight into the trash," etc. But I am intensely grateful for the way I am allowed to have a hand in directing our country. I can decide what is important to me and vote my conscience. It's a small way to make a small difference. And if I think that my hometown needs more trees or more parks, I can go out and campaign for it. I can contact my government leaders. I can organize groups to support me. These are huge blessings, and I have to remember how grateful I am for them! Whether you think the president should change this time, or not again until four more years, I hope you can also be grateful for the flexibility and fluidity of our government. It's not perfect, but it's better than many.