This country has a serious problem with being taken in by slick, smiling, "guys you'd want to have a beer with". It's time to kick our obsession with the sorts of facades that are usually wielded by sociopaths anyway. You may not want to "have a beer" with an introvert, but that person probably gives serious thought to the problem at hand. You may not like that the "geek" is smarter than you, but the fact he or she studied harder in school just might mean he or she can solve complicated policy problems. You may prefer people with the fake smile, but perhaps "eeyore" has more of a handle on the life-and-death stakes of his or her social policy decisions.
I remember when the Internet revolution was depicted as "Revenge of the Nerds", and the traditional frat boy network was baffled about how all the nerds they had bullied in school were now more successful than they were. At that time society recognized the value of people with math and computer science skills. Now is the time for society to take a broader recognition of those introverts who are willing to "do the research" and "do the work". Perhaps schmoozing and speech-making is not the number one skill we need in a policy-maker and legislator!
Just a thought...
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