December 5, 2007
Amid all the empty promises and false hopes that accompany the upcoming presidential election is an overwhelmingly pessimistic question that I feel must be addressed. Will the upcoming election actually result in any major changes? Or, more specifically, can it?
Regardless of whom Americans choose in 2008, the legacy of the current administration will certainly make the task a difficult one. With a national debt of more than $9 trillion, a “war on terrorism” in progress and global warming beginning to take effect, I’m surprised people are vying for the job.
But, it is certainly true that there is not yet a distinguishably brilliant candidate. Trying to find faults with the candidates is like playing I Spy in a perfectly square white room. Can you find the elephant? Either you find yourself not liking the person or you don’t think other people will. “Electability” is a huge factor and raises questions of whether Americans would elect a woman or a Mormon or a black man.
We’re all waiting for that perfect person — a George Washington, Abraham Lincoln or John Kennedy — someone to love and admire and who centuries later will be remembered fondly. But no such person exists. Maybe some people really are deterred for practical reasons. (Al Gore, anyone?)
Americans want change, but is it attainable? Slavery plagued the nation for hundreds of years, but in order to abolish it Lincoln had to fight a war that cost tens of thousands of lives.
Today, however, there isn’t just one problem; there are dozens, and it doesn’t seem like any solutions are in sight. Politicians tiptoe around the issues, and instead of proposing solutions and deliberating publicly through debates, they say things that don’t really have any meaning but ensure they don’t lose a single vote.
What happens if we elect one of these people and find out their solutions don’t coincide with the wants and needs of the general public? (Sounds familiar.)
I always stress the importance of voting, but it’s easy to understand why Americans might be apathetic in 2008.
My reasons may not be the most optimistic, but if you don’t vote, it’s always possible for conditions to get worse. So what I guess I’m advocating is for Americans to choose the lesser of two evils this election. I can’t say who that will be, or from which party, but I must stress that you choose.
Besides, no one will want to hear you complain once they find out you didn’t vote.
