Election Day

Today has been really boring as far as exciting days go. I voted weeks ago by absentee ballot, so I didn’t even get to go to the polls, stand in line, and pull the lever.

The only source of anxiety is, well, not knowing for certain who is going to win. Duh, right? Well, I’ve been hearing for weeks now that Obama has a solid lead. But I wonder if, like a mismatched college bowl game where the media commentators twist the facts to make the possibility of a close game seem more likely, I have been misled by hours of CNN.

The earliest east coast polls just closed on what is guaranteed to be a historic day.

Change is not Unique

One day while I was home on college break, heading out the door, my mother said to me, “You’re probably more liberal than you think.” I laughed it off, as if being called a liberal or a democrat was a personal attack. (Not that some wouldn’t take it that way.) At the time I would have easily classified myself as a conservative republican, but without justification. Politics was more about the image than the idea.

Only recently have I begun to fight back against my default apathy, which, as I type these words, I am reminded is a much more difficult fight than I ever expected. I refuse to give up, or give in. I want to care very much, and I believe that my vote ultimately does count towards something. Even if that something is ideologically out of reach. Baby steps.

I’ve watched friends get behind a candidate (Ron Paul, mostly), and their passion and conviction is inspiring. I hope to one day feel that connection, but it seems that falling head-over-heals for a candidate is far more complicated than crushing on a cute girl in class. Rarely, in this day and age, am I permitted to observe a candidate from afar and overlook the imperfections that would otherwise dissuade me from supporting him. Instead, the micro attention feeds me an incessant stream of useless information. Never has so much been made of so little.

Further complicating things, information, useless or otherwise, without a personal conviction breeds apathy. It’s all static, and I want to cut through it. Oddly, the Friends episode where Ross tallies the pluses and minuses of Rachel and Emily comes to mind. I wish supporting a candidate were that easy. E.g., McCain has fat ankles – Vote Obama.

The real fight, for me, is realizing that… I don’t know how to put it exactly without falling into patriotic rhetoric too much. I need to realize that this all means something. For eight years now we’ve seen how badly a president can damage the image of the United States. The modern day cliche, “Change,” is what is needed. But, it certainly isn’t reserved solely for Barack Obama. Instead, each one of us, as Americans and as humans needs to look in the mirror and consider what change would mean for us and how we can bring it about ourselves regardless of who our leader is.

When Reality Bites

David Brooks writes in an article titled, When Reality Bites, that the Democrats are basically screwed on two major issues.

1. Their proposal for immediate withdrawal from Iraq.
2. Their conflicting proposals of fiscal discipline and new programs.

Removing the troops from Iraq would be a huge mistake. Thomas Barnett’s idea of a large peacekeeping force has always made sense to me.

The only way the Democrat’s domestic spending proposals seems possible is if they take the money that would have been spent on military in Iraq and use it here in the U.S.

Still, good luck bringing home the troops without messing up the world.

(via NYT)

Super Tuesday 2008

Super Tuesday is almost as dip worthy as the Super Bowl. I wonder if the game will be as good. The anticipation is killing me.

I struggled with whether to add Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul to the graphic, but it wasn’t worth the extra effort in Photoshop to fit them in. Maybe if I could do some sort of footnote graphic – a “kind of running, but not really,” type of thing.

I’m in New Hampshire, so there’s no voting to be done today. Instead, I’ll be hopping between FOX and CNN as I read Antitrust, Federal Courts and Wills, Trusts & Estates for my classes tomorrow.

Primary Season Lurks – Do I Care?

I received the following email this morning from my friend Zack:

My apologies for the mass email. I am loath to send one, but this is important.

Please consider donating to Ron Paul, the presidential candidate I support, today Dec. 16th. There is an effort underway to raise $10M in a single day, breaking all records. When he is sworn in as the next president, Ron Paul will immediately bring our troops home from Iraq and all overseas bases. With the tremendous savings, Ron will lead the effort to abolish the federal income tax. He will cancel the Patriot Act, and restore Habeas Corpus and the rule of law.

Today I stood for 2 hours on a freeway overpass and showed a 4’x8’ Ron Paul sign to about 15,000 cars and trucks, in the snow and sleet. I have donated to Ron, and I believe in him. I voted for Gore in 2000 and Kerry in 2004, but this year I am voting for Ron – a man of principle and integrity. He is the only candidate I have ever donated to.

Regards,

Fives / Zack

I want to care about politics. It seems like the mature thing to do. However, I’ve always been turned off by the effort required to acquire a good understanding of the candidates. This results in me just deciding I like the Republican nominee because I favor smaller government. But, I’m not settling for that reasoning this year. The government is huge and not getting much smaller regardless of who is sitting in the Oval Office.

Ron Paul has been in news I read A LOT. I don’t think he’s as popular in a traditional nightly news sense, but if you look on Digg, Reddit, and YouTube you’ll find a lot of “Ron Paul 2008 – Hope For America” buzz.

I’m not sold yet, partially because I haven’t had time to do the research myself. I will, hopefully before the Michigan primary. But, from watching this video he seems to be one of the most respectable candidates running – by that I mean he’s well spoken, experienced, and doesn’t have mistresses scattered across NYC.

The first primaries are:

* Iowa on January 3rd
* Wyoming on January 5th (Republican only)
* New Hampshire on January 8th
* Michigan on January 15.

I’ll be in Michigan during the New Hampshire primary, unfortunately. It would be exciting to be around for that.

The Democratic primary schedule is available here.

The Republican primary schedule is available here.

Interested in Politics?

I’m wondering what causes someone to be interested in Politics. Or, maybe more importantly, what turns those who are vehemently opposed or merely indifferent to voting off of the subject entirely.

There is a plethora of news available now, and we can customize it any way we like. I can completely exempt myself from any aspect of news. No longer does the newspaper and the nightly news dominate my info-stream. It never really did. Now it is RSS feeds, customizable online news sites, and email updates.

What will it take to get those who are not interested in politics and who don’t bother exercising one of, if not the most important, right – the right to vote. Every vote does matter.