jlh | special to the americans

VOTE

Something I wrote in 2004 about the importance of voting even if you don't live in a swing state:

Wanna know how the Christian Coalition-types gained so much power, not only in Kansas but in the rest of the US--so much that they became a major force in the Republican party? They ran candidates and voted in local elections. They did that grass roots democracy thing, only no one was paying them any mind because who votes in local-only elections?

I bring this up because I want to stress that even if you don't live in a swing state, your vote counts. [...] Your state legislature is where any constitutional amendments (whatever gets out of the Congress) will be ratified, and ... where gay marriage will be decided. It's also where most civil rights are decided and where so much of the nitty gritty of the education, health, and welfare system actually gets determined. If you live in a rural area, your town council or county board will decide on how the roads are maintained, how school funding is distributed and how high your property taxes will be. If you live in an urban area, your city officials will also be setting the tone for things like law enforcement, public works, and mass transportation.

Important stuff! Make your voice heard!

My mom worked the elections when I was a kid, stayed late to count all the ballots. That Wednesday after was one of the few days that she wouldn't be up with us in the morning, and Dad would have to make breakfast. My father was very active in the Democratic party and I've inherited some of his yellow dog tendancies, I'll admit. But I'd never ever not vote.

I tried to vote this morning, but post-move exhaustion and post-move lack of food in house for breakfast led to near-hysteria when I was confronted by the line. So I headed into class and came back around 11:30, when the line was slightly shorter. And then I was able to skip the line, as apparently there was almost no one there from my actual election district, so there was no line inside. Excellent!

Oh, if you want to know, I voted for Obama/Biden and my congresswoman and state senator and state rep straight down the Working Families Party line, and then a bunch of judges on the Democratic Party line, and yes on that random referendum about veterans and points on the social service exam.

Now I'm at work, really tired, need to run out and get some caffeine to go with my afternoon snack, and have been reading "Pollster" Mark Blumenthal's articles on the problems with exit polls. I thought about doing my Yuletide sign up, but I'm a little too tired to focus. And then later I'm heading over to

ali_wildgoose's place with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Ocean's 11!

Oh, yeah--I moved yesterday. It went fine, my life is in boxes, and I'm very, very tired.