It is sort of ironic that I chose this title for my piece because, by labeling this article as such, I am actually addressing my political views in a sense. I'm sure you've seen your fair share of writing from relatively privileged, white college students on this platform discussing their polarized political views and at this point, I applaud you for even clicking on another article that seems even remotely related to the upcoming election. Funny that these are the articles that go viral. That alone says something about where we are at as a country. I am sorry if you are one of the people who has found the candidate that floats your boat, but for someone like me who is conflicted in every way, the media and coverage of the election drives me up the wall. I will vote because, despite all of it's shortcomings, I believe in the structure of our democratic republic. However, at this point, I have no idea for which candidate I will cast my ballot. Truth is, I have found more flaws with both than pros on either end. They say that a write-in is essentially a wasted vote, but this is looking like the most desirable option right now.

Though I respect a person's right to discuss his or her politics freely, I have trouble voicing my political opinions for two main reasons. The first is that I am incredibly moderate. For this reason, Democrats and Republicans would both take issue with me. It is difficult to talk politics when you know that your conversation partners may agree with you on one issue and then vehemently disagree with you on the next. Right now, the political climate is such that young moderates like me are floundering in a sea of polarized opinions with not even a buoy of bipartisanship to cling to. The second reason is that I really do not know which candidate I support. Since I have been of voting age, I have called myself a candidate voter rather than a Democrat or Republican, but this philosophy is not helping me make my decision this time around. In a political race where it seems that no candidate agrees with all of my main concerns, I am left with the very difficult task of parsing through both sides and deciding which candidate I dislike the least. For example. could I vote for Trump, a candidate who identifies as pro-life (anti-abortion), yet does not support gun control and shows signs of prejudice against entire populations of persons worldwide? To me, these are not characteristics of a pro-life person, who ought to respect the lives of all people and do what he can to limit the potential for their unjust loss. However, Hillary, like many others in her party, supports gun control yet is very openly pro-choice. So, as a pro-life independent, I really have no one to vote for. You see my issue? I am stuck like this on a number of other issues that are central to who I am as a woman, a Catholic, a young adult, an American, a person. Since I cannot combine two candidates, my only choice would be to develop my own party and run for president, which is rather impractical considering I am a 21-year-old college student with no political experience, money, pantsuits, or real interest in running for president just so that four years later the vast majority of the country that I know and love can hate my guts.

I don't discuss my political opinions regarding this election with most people because it saddens me. It saddens me to know that I am going to have to rate equally important elements of my creed on a scale of "least very important" to "most very important" and then vote according to these arbitrary designations just so that I can indicate a name on my ballot. I will vote come November because I am an American, and I do not take my voice for granted. Yes, I will vote, but I most certainly will not like it.