Yep, I voted. But sadly, or should I say, much to my frustration in not being able to give certain people an emphatic no, almost all of the abusive ads I've had to endure over the past two months were for people who don't represent my district.
WHAT!?! I lost countless hours of my life to listen to garbage that had absolutely no effect on my vote? Oh, the tragedy. Now you know why I don't watch much TV. The worst part, though, was that I even got phone calls and flyers in the mail from candidates who weren't even in my district. I have such confidence in these people's abilities to manage my tax dollars effectively, don't you?
I did, however, get much satisfaction in some of my "no" votes. I definitely cackled as I pushed the little "no" button. If I had to improve the voting process, I'd have them make the "no" button really big, really bold, and make a really satisfying "NO" noise. :) All of the amendments and referendums, I'm proud to say, I voted NO on. :)
Now, some folks who know where I live and know the significant ballot issues I faced might be surprised that I'd vote no on everything. Allow me to illuminate. First off, I am a true conservative. None of this wishy-washy political hype that Americans think is conservative. I am a thousand times more conservative than the so-called conservatives in our country. However, I am also a thousand times more liberal than most of the so-called liberals in our country. That Jesus guy? I actually think we need to live like he taught. *gasp* (Yes, I know, my love for homicide kinda sorta goes against that, but hey, we're working on other sin in my life right now, okay?)
But anyway, the main reason I vote no on all amendments and referendums is the deception involved. For example, about half of them read, "Without increasing taxes, we'll increase funding for this project." Oh really? Could you explain how that's going to happen? Because I may not be a math whiz, but here's something I do know. Considering that many important projects are already underfunded, and you aren't getting new money, where exactly is the money coming from? Uh huh. That's what I thought. I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER vote for an increase in funding for ANYTHING unless I know exactly where the money is coming from.
Then, there's the abusive phone calls I got about some of the ballot issues. "You're a bad parent unless you increase school funding." Really? So while you're wasting my time, calling to convince me that I need to be a better parent, who exactly is watching YOUR children? The whole racist/bigot/homophobe accusations if I don't vote for the ballot measures dealing with those issues? Do NOT get me started. What all of this garbage boils down to is this: when you decide to attack me personally and offend me by leaving insulting messages on my answering machine, you can guarantee that I will NOT support your ballot measure.
Mostly, though, I have to say that I tend to vote the way I do because I want as little governmental intervention in my life as possible. I understand some of it to some degree, but some of it borders on ridiculous.
For the next election, I have a plan. I'm going to keep a spreadsheet of all the idiotic ads, phone calls, mailings, personal visits from neighbors I've never met who supposedly care about us, and the people who are the least abusive are the ones who'll be getting my vote. Politicians-take note.
Finally, because I think he's got some great points on voting (which are much less shallow than mine), take a look at what Will Samson has to say. I really do believe that if we as voters took the time to reflect on those thoughts before voting, and if our candidates understood the importance of living what they say they stand for, we could make a difference.
Which leads to a final post that Samson wrote about morality that really touched me. I realize it's too late to do anything for this election. But we do have a big election-one that will determine our next president-coming up very soon. People are already lining up and picking their favorites. Let's not be so hasty in our choices. The person who will be getting my vote isn't going to be the prettiest guy or gal, or the one with the right letter behind their name, or the one with the smoothest talk. I want straight talk. I want honesty. I don't want these campaign ads that distort the facts. I don't want the "anything to win" mentality.
Each election has gotten worse in the attacks, in the garbage, in the things I find morally reprehensible. I am a conservative Christian, but let me be perfectly clear. I would rather vote for a candidate who is openly gay or openly an adulterer or openly a murderer than a candidate who is going to lie to and decieve the American public. And no, this is not a slam on our current president-because while he may be guilty of some of those things, so are a lot of those attacking him. It goes both ways, and I can assure you that the way I will be voting will depend largely on the factors above.
If you haven't voted today, go out and do it. Thousands of men and women died so you have the right, millions more would be willing to die for the opportunity to do so themselves. Besides, Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, Roy Romer, and Nancy Pelosi called today to make sure I'd be at the polls. Might as well make it worth all the trouble they took to record their messages and send them through the automated phone harrassment system. See, both the Democrats and the Republicans are desperate for my vote. *laughs hysterically*
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