If the polls are accurate (accuracy of political polls could be a whole column by itself), I am alarmed at the state of the nation.

The latest ABC News political poll came out Wednesday. It contained some amazing data.

Probably the most amazing item dealt with who the voters thought was most likely to tell the truth. Most voters thought it was Bob Dole, but said they would vote for Bill Clinton anyway.

Equally as amazing was a different poll that showed most people thought Bill Clinton would do a better job fighting drugs than Bob Dole.

But to me, the most interesting item in the ABC poll was the character versus empathy issue. The character issue may be a loser for Bob Dole. Dole has turned to sharper attacks against what he perceives is a lack of character in Bill Clinton.

But the poll showed voters are more concerned about who best understands their problems.

Voters were asked which is more important: "Someone who has the highest personal character" or "someone who understands the problems of people like you."

Empathy beat character by a margin of 70-28. As it relates to the candidates, the people who rate empathy as a more important trait than character prefer Clinton 67 to 21.

Those who are more concerned with character choose Dole by a nearly identical 69-23 margin.

The bad news for Dole, of course, is that most people - by an almost 3 to 1 margin - seem to be more concerned with empathy. Character just doesn't matter that much to them.

That's what alarms me.

I have always felt that character was the most important trait. When I hire somebody, for example, I always try to determine character.

We - the staff and I - can teach somebody how to cover a beat, write a story or lay out a page. We can't teach somebody how to come to work on time. No amount of training will keep someone from lying, cheating or stealing if they lack character.

I suppose I'm not really surprised by these poll results, just disheartened. I think it's sad that most people think Bob Dole has a stronger character and is more likely to tell the truth, but will vote for Bill Clinton anyway.

But really, isn't it to be expected?

Think of the state of affairs in the U.S. today. Lots of people have lost sight of what's important. It's a live-for-the-moment mentality out there.

All those traditional values candidates like to talk about - morals, honesty, character, integrity - just don't seem to matter any more.

Perhaps candidates should change their tactics. Instead of trying to convince voters of their strong character, they should simply show how well they can take care of business.

The ad could go something like this, "Sure, I cheat on my taxes, cheat on my wife, lie to you, misrepresent my opponent's positions and flip-flop on my own. I smoke a little dope, too. But hey, that's not really important, is it? I will make sure there's a government program to solve all your problems. I will make sure that your every need is met. I feel your pain. I will take care of you."

Of course empathy wins out over character. It's the "What's in it for me?" factor.

I place the blame for this squarely on the shoulders of, well, us.

We truly are a nation of hypocrites. It is much akin to the way we view the entertainment industry. Eighty percent of us say the movies are too violent or too sexy. But if Hollywood makes one that isn't sexy or violent, we won't watch.

If you polled Americans, the vast majority would tell you that character is important. Yet the candidates we put in office often are devoid of character.

I still believe there is a silent majority of Americans out there that will, at some point, spring to life and turn things around.

I'll keep waiting. In the meantime, if anybody has any good ideas on how to motivate that silent majority, let me know. [[In-content Ad]]