In this election season, I've seen a lot of things. I've seen Deez Nuts poll at 9 percent and gain more national attention that some of the real candidates. I've seen Donald Trump call people "losers" in his speeches and remain taken seriously as a candidate in a race to become our country's leader. I've seen Hillary Clinton star in and produce her own Vine. This election is unfortunately kind of a shitshow. We can obviously say some good things about Bernie. At least he's here. Do you think Jeb Bush hates everything yet? Probably.
Many factors come into play when considering the turn this election has taken. The reason Deez Nuts was created was because Brady Olsen wanted to break the two-party system and also because he did not like the frontrunners from each party. Donald Trump is just physical proof that you can do whatever you want when you have money. Hillary Clinton is just desperate for Millennials to like her. The media hasn't played a very productive part either. Most of the attention given to the election has established Donald Trump as basically the star of the show. He says something crazy and no one can let you move through your 24-hour day without telling you about it at least 17 times. They're making him the person people love to hate. Hating him is generally expected because he basically goes beyond the beliefs of the Republican Party and most people can't relate to a guy whose dad gave him a "small" loan of $1 million. How many people do you know who think $1 million is not a lot of money? He is the last person you want in a position of power.
On the other side, loving him just seems to go along with people who want to be "edgy." You obviously get some kind of reaction out of people when you tell people you support him. Controversy is really attractive to people in that way and you know...maybe rich people have enough reason to like him.
No matter who you support or who you plan on voting for, usually around this time people begin to get overwhelmed with what is going on and how much it follows you around. Some people see the coverage of the election and immediately get frustrated. Following it all can be hard. Getting yourself to watch all the debates can be hard. It can also be hard to just listen to conversations or even be involved in them. Especially for this election, people see this as a negative thing. A majority of the coverage is Donald Trump acting out and making a scene. Even news channels aren't safe from needing views and also dabbling in the entertainment function of media in general.
This isn't always productive for the election. People need information, but they aren't always given the right information. People know this and find it difficult to take it seriously. Who can blame them? The media is making this just as much of a circus as the candidates are. The amount of time and information involved in an election gives people enough leeway to change their minds. Or in some cases, decide not to vote at all.
Indecision plagues voters in almost any election, national or local. Some of them are able to finally be swayed one way or another but in other cases it's just easier to not decide at all.
The thing is though, not deciding is the worst thing you can do. I would rather you vote for Deez Nuts than not make an informed vote. This does not have to be an extensive process. This really does not have to be as hard as you think it is. Today it's probably easier than ever to pull up information on a candidate that is simple and clear. Vote for what you want, it doesn't matter who it is. It's fine. Be in any party you want and you don't have to make these beliefs public.
Participating in politics is necessary. It's your life. It determines your future and what happens to you. You don't need to be an activist raising signs and picketing like that one episode of "SpongeBob." And we all get it, a lot of what's going on right now is a joke and doesn't signal anything good for America. The polls showing the amount of support for Donald Trump is very disheartening for some people. Even if he does become president and you end up uprooting to Canada, it's OK! As long as you voted. As long as you tried. As long as you took part. It means something! All of it does. You can't factually say it doesn't matter. It truly does. The work that gets done in Washington D.C is what happens in your city. Even local elections. Just because they're not as covered as the national election, you should have a say.
This doesn't even only apply to young people. Everyone expects young people not to vote because of not being informed or because they don't care. While young people do tend to be less involved, that doesn't exclude any other age group. You should be informed. It applies to you. This is your country and partially your decision.
So, I know this is only going to reach a very specific age group so I am just going to direct this to you. Please vote. Take some time out of your day and know about the candidates. Pick whatever party you want. Pick whatever candidate you want. As long as you take a stance. As long as you make a decision.
And even if it doesn't work out you can always move to Canada. Or Europe. School's cheap there.
