There is so much pressure from everyone to vote. Posters, flyers, advertisements, buttons, stickers, everything! I understand that it was a right that we earned and we shouldn't let it go unused, but using it just to use it seems like such a waste. Everyone is telling us, "vote, vote, vote!" With all the coercion people are going out and doing just that, voting. It's ridiculous. Should your reason for voting be because someone told you to? For starters that's a lame reason. If you're going to do something do it with a purpose;an intention to do so. Secondly, because someone on television told you to? Really? If everyone did everything people on television told them too we'd all be living with boxes of useless items from infomercials. And lastly with something this important you should be doing for some reason. Because you actually feel that way, that a certain individual embodies what you believe in and feel like they will do a good job and follow those actions and promises.
Voting isn't just voting. It's picking a person and picking a side - Democrat, Republican, Independent, Libertarian, etc. What side that you decide on is crucial. It can make or break an election. If you vote for the person you truly, 100 percent believe in then solid; good for you, " you go Glenn Coco." But if you vote for the person your parents tell you to or who is popular among your peers, you need to reevaluate your life choices.
Following the status quo is no way to live your life. "High School Musical" all taught us that back in 2006. Voting for who your parents tell you to vote for isn't horrible, but if everyone is on their way to becoming independent from them, making their own life choices and becoming their own person, tell me how exactly voting for who they tell you to does that? Say your parents are democrats so you become a democrat and then you have kids and they make the same choice and the cycle continues. What good does that do? It's a fall back for democrats but it doesn't have any individualism nor any sense of what's needed. All it is, is following a tradition. Additionally, don't listen to your friends either. That's just stupid. Voting for the same person won't make your friendship stronger or better. Voting is a personal choice and shouldn't be a public thing.
If you can't decide if you wish to vote or not, think about a few things first. Think about simply registering to vote. Registering is a step to voting and gives you the option and it doesn't make it mandatory, it simply allows you to. Think about why you are voting. Think about what is motivating you to do so. Do some research. On ALL the parties in the running. Go to each person's website and find primary sources, be wary of all second party information, candidates are brutal towards each other and will twist words to make themselves look better. Think about which person's values you identify best with. Also, consider what you want your vote to do. If you want your vote to really count or if you want to vote for the person you actually like. Maybe the person you best identify with has a very slim chance of making it to the final round. Do you still vote for that person because you believe in them and their values? Or do you change your vote to someone that you somewhat agree with that has a better chance of winning?
Bottom line: don't vote unless you want to. Voting just because or because someone told you to abuses the whole system. It isn't a personal choice anymore. It' s simply an option being used. Where's the patriotism in that?
Take the slogan to heart: "Uncle Sam wants you to vote."
