Voting counts today

When the voice on the radio alarm this morning said the polls open at 6:30 I jumped out of bed and started the coffee pot. I was going to be first in line.

I should have gone without the coffee.

Although I was in line before 6:30, I was 19th. I love voting. I love being around people who vote; people who are informed; people who care; people of passion.

Have you voted yet? Do it!

You may have a favorite for the general election in November, but if you don't vote for him or her today, he or she won't make it to the November ballot.

There ought to be a law. Anyone who does not vote cannot voice a single complaint about their local, state or national government or leadership. Ever.

The television personalities were at my polling station, doing whatever they do. I was "background scenery" standing in line with my Campbell University travel mug of coffee, boning up on the voter's guide provided in my local newspaper.

Some offices are obscure enough that I didn't notice any advertising about them, so I was reading up while in line. I also was sure to thank the volunteers for devoting a long, long day to helping people get through the process.

I was surprised that my ballot was a "color in the circle" kind of ballot. In one sense, I have more faith that those will be accurately counted than I do that electronic ballots will be accurately counted.

Still, in this era when it should be possible to log in and vote from home on my computer, it is unsettling to color in a circle to indicate my preference for president of the United States and other offices.

I saw my neighbor there and encouraged him to vote often. Another neighbor was taking off for her morning run and I said I would cast a ballot for her. She thanked me and said she'd run and extra lap for me.

See, community. It's all about doing for each other. As Ukranian/American commedian Yakov Smirnoff says, "What a country!"

Posted by jameson ( May 06 2008, 09:32:29 AM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]