I have to admit that I watched a couple of hours of election results tonight, culminating with President Obama's wonderful speech. I am so excited about what he might be able to do with four more years. Tonight, as I watched news coverage, I read what my friends wrote on Facebook. I admire those friends who posted multiple times, who were engaged, who said they voted with their children watching. As a country, we need that.
We need, more than anything, to be involved.
Oh, I could write all this rhetoric about what we need to do, but I won't. The President's speech was just that good. I even liked Mitt Romney's speech. I don't need to add anything.
So why did I do my errands, today, with a pride in the fact that I'd voted? Why did I listen to NPR's program on why people don't vote and sneer inwardly as I drove to meet my friend for a walk? I know I shouldn't have that attitude, but I do.
Despite some ambivalence about the ability of any elected official to make relevant changes, I voted anyway. Despite some belief that my vote wouldn't matter, I voted anyway. Despite the thought that I might lose that which I'd hoped for, I voted anyway. I voted because the election wasn't a sure thing. Oh, I could have faced a loss and when I find out results of some of the smaller issues, I know I will be disappointed about some of them. That's part of the process though. Life can be disappointing.
I voted because, though the effects of my vote might be minuscule, it's still an effect.
I buy a lottery ticket once in a while. I know the odds of winning are low. They're really low. Even when people buy twenty or thirty tickets at a time, the odds of winning are starkly low. Yet, if I never buy a lottery ticket, the odds are zero. Nada. Zilch. There's a difference between almost zero and zero. That's how I feel about the effect of my tiny vote among the millions. It's not zero.
You know, I read that about a third of the people don't vote. Is that true?
Yup. I just looked it up. In 2008, only 64% of the people who were allowed to vote for president actually voted. That means that about a third didn't bother.
If that third had actually rallied around another party, the green party or the libertarians, they could have made a difference. They might have surprised us and won.
But with apathy, you get exactly what you expect.
Nothing.
Thank you for listening, jb
We need, more than anything, to be involved.
Oh, I could write all this rhetoric about what we need to do, but I won't. The President's speech was just that good. I even liked Mitt Romney's speech. I don't need to add anything.
So why did I do my errands, today, with a pride in the fact that I'd voted? Why did I listen to NPR's program on why people don't vote and sneer inwardly as I drove to meet my friend for a walk? I know I shouldn't have that attitude, but I do.
Despite some ambivalence about the ability of any elected official to make relevant changes, I voted anyway. Despite some belief that my vote wouldn't matter, I voted anyway. Despite the thought that I might lose that which I'd hoped for, I voted anyway. I voted because the election wasn't a sure thing. Oh, I could have faced a loss and when I find out results of some of the smaller issues, I know I will be disappointed about some of them. That's part of the process though. Life can be disappointing.
I voted because, though the effects of my vote might be minuscule, it's still an effect.
I buy a lottery ticket once in a while. I know the odds of winning are low. They're really low. Even when people buy twenty or thirty tickets at a time, the odds of winning are starkly low. Yet, if I never buy a lottery ticket, the odds are zero. Nada. Zilch. There's a difference between almost zero and zero. That's how I feel about the effect of my tiny vote among the millions. It's not zero.
You know, I read that about a third of the people don't vote. Is that true?
Yup. I just looked it up. In 2008, only 64% of the people who were allowed to vote for president actually voted. That means that about a third didn't bother.
If that third had actually rallied around another party, the green party or the libertarians, they could have made a difference. They might have surprised us and won.
But with apathy, you get exactly what you expect.
Nothing.
Thank you for listening, jb
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