A Few Thoughts on the US Election

Here it is, only Day 6 and I am already behind in my goal of posting everyday. Maybe I can play catch up and post again tonight once the election returns start to come in.

I don't know about you but I am very happy that the US Election Day is finally here. As I have heard from many of my friends, on both sides of the 49th, it seemed as though the campaigning was becoming nastier and nastier as time went on.

At the end of it all, I was beginning to wonder what any of the candidates stood for. Oh, it was easy to tell who they were against, you'll note I didn't say what they were against, that was a little hard to tell as well. During one recent commercial break, I learned that two women did not like each other and from the sounds of it, neither one deserved to be elected, that people in Michigan really don't want easier travel to and from Ontario (that is what they mean by voting against the new bridge, isn't it? It couldn't be that the owner of the current bridge is afraid of losing revenue... ), and that Emergency Managers are really dictators and don't help people at all. No wonder voters are confused!

In California there are 11 propositions this elecction. In Michigan, a much more manageable seven. Easy, peasy...now what did I hear about human slavery while watching Leno the other night...?

I shouldn't pick on these two states, I have no animous toward Michigan and I quite like visiting California. It just happens that I watch their stations more than others.

For the voters in these states (and others I am sure), the negative campaigning must become white noise, or at least close to it. In class last night we were talking about how people tend to notice the ads and verbiage that are closest to their own views. It would seem then that these ads only serve to solidify the opposition that already exists against certain candidates and may not really be effective in swaying the undecided to your side. An interesting premise for sure.

I saw a social media post last night that urged those who are still undecided to stay home and not vote. I can understand the sentiment, if you haven't been able to decide at this point in time, you are most likely going to choose by the last message you hear. This is great for the campaign who has a good GOTV (Get Out the Vote) program that has identified the undecided, but does it really support the idea of democracy in the form of an informed electorate.

Yes, I am sounding somewhat jaded. I really do encourage all eligible voters to get out to the polls today but I also urge them to read up on the issues, check the candidates records for yourself. I know it isn't alwasy easy to dig through all of the verbiage but the internet has made this information readily available to anyone with access to a computer (even one at a local public library).

So there is it, my rant against negative and confusing election advertising. My message to my American friends...GET OUT AND VOTE! If you don't, I don't want to hear your complaints for the next four year :)

miss kimmy