Why I Think People Should Vote

huffingtonpost.com

I am not going to sit here and lecture you on who you should vote for and I won't say that you absolutely 100% have to vote. 

Hear me out.

People go around saying that voting is one of the greatest rights we have as citizens of the United States, but I don't think people truly understand why. Sure - our vote doesn't directly go to the person we vote for. It goes to our state's delegates who then vote based on what their state chooses. 

That is just it - we tell the delegates how to vote - we decide which party and representative we want. If Connecticut is predominately voting Democrat then the delegates have the responsibility to represent our choice and vote Democrat. Which means that candidate gets the state. 

So yes, your vote counts. 

More than that though, it is a way to reaffirm your beliefs. It is a way to stand up against the policies of someone you don't agree with and side with the one you do. 

We all have different opinions and that is okay. Instead of sitting on our butts and arguing about them, go do something about it. 

Yes, I am going to vote for our current President because I identify with his policies and opinions. Am I saying if you vote for Romney you are wrong? Absolutely not. You have a different set of beliefs and opinions and things you stand for and I respect that. 

The only time I speak out is if you attack my position with false information or things that are factually incorrect or you tell me I am wrong. 

That is when I get to stand up and put you in your place.

But tonight I'm simply asking you to stand up for what you believe in. 

And if you don't know enough about either candidate and you don't feel comfortable - I think it is okay not to vote. People who don't know what they are voting for shouldn't vote because they still need the time to figure out where they stand. Or maybe they just don't care. If that is the circumstance then I'd rather you stay away from the polls. 

The purpose of voting isn't just for the good of the people but for the good of yourself. 

Do what you have to do, but be proud doing it. 

The Final Presidential Debate

Last night's debate may have been the most unexpected of debates the country has seen. The polls had essentially named Governor Romney the winner of the first debate and President Obama the winner of the second. The public, for the most part could agree. The problem with last night's debate may be that the answer just isn't so clear this time. 

There were pros and cons to each man and his performance in the debate. Ultimately though, it seemed as though Obama may have had the upper hand. Many people were probably more than aware of Mitt Romney mistakes overseas this year and his very apparent lack of foreign policy experience.

Here is the run down of pros and cons for each man - in my opinion: 

Obama:Pros

- He was confident and consistent throughout the debate. It was hard to tell if anything really shook him, although it is doubted anything did. 

- Some may see it as cheap shots, but Obama displayed a sense of humor last night. He saw and heard something he disliked and didn't agree with and instead of getting angry he saw the opportunity to take a shot. Sometimes if it presents itself you should take the shot. It made Romney look weak and old fashioned. 

-He stayed focused on the topics given to him. He was detailed in his answers giving exactly what the moderator was looking for in terms of an answer. Whether or not the answer is something the moderator agrees with is different. 

Romney:Pros

-He stayed away from a severe conservative tone. He is labeled as a flip-flopper but the fact that he is loosened up a little helps him be more attractive to the people. 

- He honestly has held his own in terms of all three debates. He has had some larger downfalls but in general, he was able to stay strong in his conversations with President Obama. 

Obama:Cons

- By the end of this debate it was clear that many of his answers were just memorized. He almost goes through his answers without thinking because they are the same things he's been saying since the beginning. 

- His shots at Romney last night may have hurt his image as a President. It isn't necessarily the most respectful thing to do however, it isn't the worst thing someone could do. 

Romney:Cons

- To start out, he simply is not knowledgable enough in foreign policy to have any sort of upper hand.

- He really floundered on the military, he made it seem as though he only learned about how it works in the last few months. 

- He was frantic in his answers, he was rushed from the moment he started talking because he always seemed to need to have the last word. 

- He was visibly nervous and maybe even shaken at times.

- What may be his largest fault is the fact that he literally repeated all of Obama's ideas but tried to pass them off as his own and different. Just because you word the same idea differently, doesn't make it your own idea. 

That may be the most confusing part of the whole debate. How could two men from two very different parties, have exactly the same plans and ideas? Obviously, we've seen it factually proven on the fact that Romney changed his postion constantly. We cannot be sure which man is telling the truth based on what they say about each other. No one has the time to go fact check all the things said on their own. We can only go based on what we think and what we see from each man in front of us. 

Tuesday: Florida Primary

     So Tuesdays are going to be my political days here on the blog :) Tonight was the long awaited Florida primary, where Mitt Romney took the victory over Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Ron Paul. This isn't the first time Romney has fought to win Florida, but it is his first victory. As of 10:40 pm reported on The Washington Post's website, Mitt Romney came in with about 46.4%, ahead of Gingrich who had 31.9%, Santorum came in with only 13.4% and Ron Paul with 7%. My initial thought is, oh God, Romney won. Then it was, at least it wasn't Newt, and then it changed to, it doesn't matter they're all terrible. In his victory speech Romney had the audacity to say this:

"Leadership is about taking responsibility, not making excuses,” he said. “Mr. President, you were elected to lead. You chose to follow. Now it’s time for you to get out of the way.”

     Excuse me? Obama is a follower? I'm sorry, while I will admit his presidency has not been the amazing show we had hoped for, he was trying to get things passed while you Republicans shot it down in Congress. He has been trying to get health care, he's been fighting for jobs, he's pulled us out of Afghanistan...and you call him a follower? Mitt Romney is an idiot as far as I'm concerned. Plus, while watching the results on MSNBC tonight, I couldn't agree more with Chris Matthews who pretty much said that unless Romney has a script or a teleprompter, he is useless.

     So, then Newt Gingrich comes on to give his speech. First, let me say that I find his wife terrifying to look at. Her face does not move in the least bit. His speech was pretty much all his thoughts mashed together in no particular order. That's fun to follow, isn't it? I will admit though, he is a better speaker than Romney ever will be. Even if it isn't a smooth speech, at least he forms somewhat coherent thoughts. Essentially what it boiled down to though, was a lot of campaign promises. My favorite is his promise to reverse the "war" that President Obama has waged on the Christian Religion. Say what? Awesome, bringing once again two things that should have never been combined in the first place.

     So what do I think will happen from here? I think essentially Romney and Gingrich will battle it out until the end, but it will get ugly. Not that it hasn't already, after Gingrich won South Carolina, Romney went after him like a beast. To get an idea, in Florida Gingrich only ran about 300 ads, while Romney had 1000s. The money spent alone by each differs drastically, which tells you a few things. A. Romney just has more resources and B. Newt might just not have been doing enough.

     I think before we get to more mudslinging by those two, Ron Paul may surprise a bit. He did technically come in 4th in Florida, but he has more delegates which by his words, "is what matters". Honestly, I think the public forgets sometimes that Santorum is even in the race at all. He just does not generate any publicity, good or bad, at least at this point. I think the last news I have heard on him is what his last name could mean, and I don't even want to get into that.

     However, I think Ron Paul has a decent chance of at least hanging on for a while longer. He has the fact that a lot of youth is standing behind him. It seems like if they aren't behind Obama, then they've turned to Ron Paul. He also is becoming the lesser of all the evils in this race, which speaks loudly for many people. The Republicans have not redeemed themselves in anyway, Congress is still a disappointment, and it doesn't look like much will be changing. That is why Ron Paul might be so popular among the youth, because he isn't a diehard conservative.

At this point, anything goes, but the mudslinging amongst the two lead dummies will continue.