This Entry is Mirrored from my blog, firemage.baywords.com
It isn't well written but it streams from the Heart.
Enjoy this Election morn, I must now sleep.
In just hours, I an thousands of others will go to the polls, not to vote like the rest of the county but to take part in the electoral process in another manner. I am a poll worker, a poll Chairman in fact, I and my fellow workers will be taking part in our sworn duty to ensure the American electoral process goes off without a hitch. In this "most important" or "biggest" election of our life times we might forget that every 3 or so months there are elections of lesser grades, in reality these elections are no less important than the huge one this up coming November 4th, the expected turn out up here in Michigan is some where over 60 maybe even 70% we have 98% of eligible voters registered, the clerks are giving us more than 5 times our normal ballot allotment, to prepare, polling sites without 23 year old chair people are suggested to bring something to roll the ballot bin around on. Every election should bring in these numbers, it is a sign of the sad state of the American nation that so few people feel that they need to vote or even feel their vote will not count.
From a young age I looked forward to voting, my parents would walk with my to the local elementary school, i would hang about while they placed their vote and then we would walk home. While my parents are not buy nature political creatures, in fact they often tell me to give it a break once and awhile, they taught me lessons of respecting the system. This system is over 200 year old, it may not be perfect but it works.
The System, is something that is important even if you think it needs to change, a change from within the system how ever slow is always better than the radical change of revolution. Rather than sit on the side lines and wine as bad things happened i decided to take part in this system of ours. Our revolution worked once, we didn't become the men we rebelled from, rather we turned them into pigs, but we can't hope for another revolution, we need to work within the system make it better from within. That type of change takes time, but we don't do it for ourselves we do it for all the people who will follow us. (yea that sounds a bit Obamaish but it's true)
When I wake up tomorrow I will not be a Democrat but rather a cog, a cog in the massive electoral machine of the United States of America. I will Ensure that everyone who comes to my polling place gets their fair chance to cast their vote for the 44th president of the United States. At 8 pm when polls close i will stay at my post until each and everyone who was there in line at 8 gets to vote, even if it requires me to stay hours after official close, I will do my duty, i will make sure that everyone else has the ability to do theirs as well, engage the system, even if you come to regreat your vote some day you can say that you at least vote rather than regretting not voting, at all.
Now a few comments on why I voted for Barack Obama to become the 43th person to hold the the title.
He is a avatar of the American Dream, he worked hard and maybe, just maybe he may show that any little American boy can dream of the office of President, no matter where they are born within our 50 states, at long as they apply themselves and work hard they can do anything. The same is true for the rest of us, while we may never become president or even leave our home state, we can work together as a nation to work out these minor problems. Our Ancestors survived Wars and Crisis now lets step up and prove ourselves worthy of their legacy rather than just rutting in what has been done.
Why did I vote Obama, he will move the nation in a better direction i feel that he is most ready to define a new era. Ever so often we have an election that changes the rule book, 1980, 1960, 1932, 1860, 1800, each new era has different rules. The Choice this year is between continuing the age of Reagan or move on to a new age. Last time we selected inspiration over the old political veteran we got JFK who got us out of the Cuban Missile Crisis and started the Space Program. Before that we pitted the Status Quo against a New Deal from New York, and for that we got FDR who brought us out of the Great Depression and put in place the walls that until the Reaganist broke them down allowing the current to rise, and FDR also in his 12 years lead us from start to near end of WWII, showing that we lefties know how to fight just as well as anyone. The last time we looked to a tall well spoken man from Illinois we got the man who saved the Union. I'm ready to take a bet, he has proven himself a talented manager having taken on both the Clinton and GOP Machines, head on. I want to see him on the world stage.
I am a Democrat, I am a Catholic, I am a Michigander, I am a Detroiter, I am an American, and On November Fourth Two thousand Eight I am Change.
Join me fellow Americans lets at the very least bring about the largest Voter turn out that this nation has seen to date, down at the polls I Am ready for you.
-Gabe, Poll Chair