"It's time to Vote"
November 02, 2010, 12:14 a.m.

As an American citizen, I'm happy that I get to vote. I'm grateful that I was born in a place where the citizens get to choose the leaders that direct the course of the nation, the state, the county and the city in which I live.

It's not always an easy thing to do. Voting. It would be easy to do if I chose to just follow trends or listen to the diatribe of the pundits, or worse, just opted not to vote at all. But I'm not willing to do that. I need to know something about the candidates: Who they are, how they lead, and which promises they've made and kept (or not-kept). This requires more than just sitting back, listening to other people. It means finding out for myself and that takes work and it's not something I can do on voting day. I have to know who I'm going to vote for before I am faced with the that ballot. This means learning about all those judges on the ballot that I've never heard of before.

How do I do that? I try to stay away from any media that tries to make a point. I don't make a habit of listening to Glenn Beck, Keith Olbermann, or even web sites like The Moderate Voice. Rabble rousing turns me off. An Us-against-Them attitude will turn me away faster than a bad commercial. Sure, I can't help but listen to the news, or my best friends (Republican), or my Mom (Democrat), but I need to take everything with a grain of salt and just look at the candidates actions instead. This may mean spending time looking at boring stuff like congressional records, judicial reviews, and taking notes.

Is it worth it? For me, yes. Sometimes the candidates that win are the ones I would not have voted for, but at least I know I voted with my conscience and that win or lose, my vote always counts. And so does yours. So, go Vote!