I've been posting a lot lately, and for that I apologize. But I have wanted to post about the presidential election for awhile now and today it's weighing heavily on my mind. Politics frustrate me!!
Here are some reasons I don't feel prepared to vote for president in November:
1. You can't believe anything you hear. Most of what all the TV channels and candidates say about each other are contradictory. How can I trust them? What's a reliable source?
2. I don't know what's best for my country. Despite my education, I don't have any experience balancing a budget of this size, or dealing with foreign countries, going to/getting out of a war, fixing an economy... etc (the list goes on and on). So what exactly qualifies me to decide what our country needs? Who am I to decide?
3. I can't judge the candidates' character without knowing them. If I can't make a judgement based on their policies (see items 1 and 2) I feel the person with the best character would make the best decisions as president. But how could I possibly know the character of the candidates when all I hear is what the media says (mostly untrue) and what they say themselves was written by someone else?
Here are some reasons I feel prepared to vote for president in November (none of which are good reasons):
1. My vote won't really make a difference anyway. If I go to all of this trouble to research and pray and try to make the best decision I can, just one schmuck will vote for the opposite person for no good reason (like, "he/she's HOT!") and cancel out my vote anyway.
2. The president doesn't have all the power. Since everything has to go through congress, it's not like everything the new president says goes. So maybe who the president is doesn't make a very big difference anyway.
3. I can vote for whoever my husband tells me to. I trust Dan's opinion (he married me after all) and feel like he knows a whole lot more about this stuff than I do, why not just let him do the work?
4. Once in office, the new president could not even do what he's saying he'll do now. What's to say that the new president won't follow through with what he said and all my research would be for nothing anyway?
I am ashamed to admit that I haven't voted in past elections due to some of these reasons and really want to be involved in this next election. Does anyone know a good way for me to prepare? I would love advice on how to get past these issues I have so I feel like I am making a good and worthwhile decision. Please comment and let me know how you decide who to vote for!
On a lighter note: Sophie has had a cold and despite her past hatred for the device (and I mean HATRED, it took two of us to hold her down); she LOVES to get her snot sucked with the snot sucker lately!! She just keeps asking for, "mo mo mo!"
9 comments:
Well, although I could argue that my political blog has all the answers, I would argue that there is really only one source that confirm who you should vote for. I make my decision based on who I think is most Christ-like (and they are never very close), and who best represents my values as a Christian.
I may not know all the issues, and what is best for our country, but God does. So I figure, if I should pick someone that seems to better listen to God, and follow his teachings, to the best of his or her ability, and they will do the best job of leading the country the way God wants them to.
I feel exactly the same way you do!! I don't know where to go to learn the TRUTH about the candidates...it's very frustrating to me. Sometimes I just think it'd be better for me to NOT vote because I don't know what I'm doing...but one thing I do is listen to the candidates when they're on talk shows and such and just get a feel for what type of person they are; then, whoever I feel that I have the most in common with, will probably get my vote. It's hard to know what to do! Good luck! :)
Amen! Oh! I can't wait for these darn elections to be over with! Oh yeah, is your birthday Sept. 6th? Mine too! I can't believe it. You are the first person I met with my same birthday. Happy Birthday to us!
I feel the same way! Sorry I don't have any good advice. Happy late Birthday!! Sounds like a you had great day with Dan and Sophie!
The snot sucker picture is worth a thousand words! As for politics, I have done some research and found that I don't really care for either canidate. I don't think I'll ever find a canidate that I agree with one hundred percent, but I was prepared to just not vote this time around because I don't care for either. I probably will still vote though, but it will be by party affiliation (Dem/Rep). I agree with the comment about congress. I love how our government is set up with the checks and balances. It is comforting to know that whoever is going to be president won't be able to lead in dictatorship.
I think you make some very good points. Especially your point about one president will not change everything, it is for that exact reason that the checks and balances system was designed. Congress will have a major role in any laws that are passed. We may have a Republican president, but with a Democratic congress things may play out differently than what the candidate promises.
I love politics, in fact I minored in political science in college. It is all very interesting to me. However, I don't feel that either the Republican or Democratic party represent my beliefs and views perfectly. And I think that depending on our stage in life, issues that affect us now may be different than issues that may affect my parents. So right now issues that cause me concern and worry involve the war, the economy, gas prices, etc. So then I match my thoughts about what should change with the candidate that best reflects my view on those issues. I will probably never find a presidential candidate that has my same views on everything, so I just pick the issues that are most important to me right now. And even though my vote won't hold much weight (my husband will probably vote the opposite and cancel mine out), it makes me feel like I have done my part in contributing to the nation's political and economic environment. And if it doesn't turn out that the candidate I voted for wins, I figure that I did my best :)
Those are my thoughts, sorry for the novel ;)
I TOTALLY AGREE!!!!! It's really frustrating. I love the picture of Sophie!
I couldn't agree more. The whole thing is so frustrating and It feels hopeless to try to find answers. I try and learn as much as I can about each candidate and then just pray about it.
By the way, your blog is adorable. I'm glad I came across it.
For me this year it is the choice between bad and worse....I'll be voting for someone I don't like just because the other option is soooooo much worse....uggg.....good luck.
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