It is amazing to me that the United States of America has the lowest percentage of voter turnout of any wealthy country. I hear it almost every day someone saying, "There is no point in voting, my vote doesn't count." In my opinion that is a stupid statement. Just think if one million people had that same feeling. One million votes would surely make a huge difference.
I am down on many democrats and many republicans, however there are good people in both parties. However, they have lost their way and vote party lines no matter what. I have heard people say, "My parents have always voted republican and so will I." Years ago I got tired of democrat and republican candidates and went from a registered democrat to unaffiliated. I don't belong to any party and never
will again. I listen to all candidates and vote for the one that I feel is best.
What bothers me the most though is that 58 countries of the world had a higher percentage of voting age people vote in their last presidential election. Uruguay had 96.1%, Ecuador 90.8%, and Brazil 77.3%. Just imagine if the US had that high of a percentage of people voting. It would change American politics in a way that we have never seen before. I know some countries do have compulsory voting.
In 2008, 57.5% of the eligible age voters voted in the presidential election. In 2010 only 36.9% voted in a mid-term election. In 2012, 53.9% voted in the presidential election. The republican party is now trying to make it harder for people to vote. This is wrong, people should be encouraged to vote. My feeling is, if you don't vote then don't complain. I hear many people tell me what is wrong in the US. When I ask them if they vote, they say no. Well if you don't vote then, don't complain.
We have a mid-term election coming up in less than three weeks. It could change the lives of millions of Americans. This is the time to vote. If you are registered vote. If you aren't registered and still can then register and vote. Voting is a right that every American should take seriously.
Copyright Larry W. Fish 2014
No comments:
Post a Comment