Election 2010
Posted by Jeremy Long on November 1, 2010
It’s the eve of the 2010 election and this post probably should have been written several weeks ago.
The months leading up to this time are always filled with ambitious future politicians vying for your vote in hopes of having a secure paycheck for the next couple of years.
Some may lie. Others will make broad promises. They always explain what they will do better than their opponent and why their opponent’s party is bad.
Far too often elections come down to Republicans v. Democrats.
There is a thought process out there that “Oh the President is a Democrat and I don’t like what’s going on in this country so I’m going to vote Republican.”
That isn’t always true.
Far too often we let the media influence our decision when it comes to whom vote for. The media is a tool that should be used to help educate ourselves on a candidate, not make our decision for us.
Do research.
If the media reports a candidate said something, look for another news outlet’s take on that and compare it. In the world we live in there is so much media spin it is hard to fight through it to find out what really happened or what someone said.
Sure it will be hard and time consuming but the hardest part of voting should not be driving to your local polling place and waiting in line.
We need to make a concerted effort to find the best candidate out there and not the best candidate for us.
Too often people vote on the basis of “What will this candidate do for me?” “How with this candidate benefit me if they are elected?”
That mentality needs to stop. We live in a country where we need to work together. We can not move forward alone, we need each other. We need a candidate that will benefit the whole.
We have the right to vote, say what you may, but that is an amazing right.
So, get out there, be informed and vote.
And this could be the resurgence of my blog.
Slamdunk said
Good post. It is more about what is in it for me…
TenaciousLee said
Really nice article. One thing I’ve noticed over the years is people seem to ignore who is running locally or at the state level. But in fact these officials hold a lot of influence over people’s daily lives.
Jeremy Long said
I couldn’t agree more with you Lee.
As a person that has covered local government (borough, township and school board) for the last four years, It is amazing see how the local officials impact the residents lives.
There are so many similarities between local, state and federal governments but on the difference is on the scale that it happens.
The thing that has amazed me over the years, is how little “Oh I’m a Republican” or “Oh I’m a Democrat” affects how a person votes on an issue if they sit on a borough council or township board. Partisan politics hardly ever come into play (with the exception of an election. In some municipalities I firmly believe someone could not get elected to the board if they were a Democrat.) The closest thing I’ve heard about partisan politics at the local level is bashing the Obama Healthcare reform or stating “I’m a republican and I’m not going to raise taxes.” (Which is nice to say but once someone is in the position of a local leader they realize how hard it is to not raise taxes and keep services up and running)
The elected officials at the local level do work (try to) for the betterment of their community.