There are so many topics that I feel very passionate about and I can’t wait to take my time and hash each and every one of them out on this blog. In the past few days however, there has been a major theme to the news and topics I’ve been seeing – our Presidential elections. I cannot express how important I feel elections are. I constantly hear, “I don’t like any candidate”, “My vote doesn’t matter, there are other people who will vote”, “I don’t care about this topic”.
This is what gets to me so much about elections and voting… We are incredibly lucky to live in a country that is “…of the people, by the people, and for the people…” Our laws, politicians, and officials are determined by the needs of the people. True, there are laws and officials that benefit the majority and not the individual but that is a consequence of living in such a large society. Here in America, we are born with rights that were paid for in blood. BLOOD! Fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters; they gave their lives so that we could live in a free world. Our whole system depends on the opinions and wants of our citizens. That is why it is so important for our citizens (each and every one) to make an educated vote on every topic.
I was watching The Colbert Report the other day, and his guest was talking about a Chinese blogger and artist Ai Weiwei. His artwork is beautiful and expressive, speaking out against the oppressiveness of China’s Communist government and his desire for freedom. One of his most well known pictures shows three frames of him dropping an ancient Chinese vase and letting it smash on the ground.
Ai Weiwei was arrested for 44 days over this picture. He was beaten severely and needed emergency brain surgery. Currently, no one knows his whereabouts. Can you imagine that?
We have the privilege of wearing whatever we want, putting up pictures that are morally offensive, writing whatever we want, criticizing our government, insulting the people who fight for our rights, and defining our own lives. As Americans, we tend to make the mistake of believing that our rights are permanent and free. The truth is that our rights depend on our knowledge of the law and Constitution. If we do not understand our rights then we will not know when we are losing them. Again, this comes back to why it is so important to vote!
It irritates me so much to hear people misquote their rights. For example, I found this while reading an article from MSNBC.com D’Oh! More Know Simpsons then Constitution. Study: More Americans familiar with the cartoon then the First Amendment. (3/1/2006)
The study by the new McCormick Tribune Freedom Museum found that 22 percent of Americans could name all five Simpson family members, compared with just one in 1,000 people who could name all five First Amendment freedoms.
What? I had to read this article twice because I couldn’t believe it. The majority of our country cares more about reality shows, cartoons, and meaningless media then the people who are there to protect our rights! This is unacceptable. According to various articles, and some number crunching from my husband and I; American Idol’s season finale voters was about ¼ of the number of voters in the 2008 presidential election. Might I add that the 2008 election had the highest amount of voters ever recorded? I hope this makes all of you unregistered voters out there run and fill out the paper work!! (Which I might add, is pretty much just a signature….)
It’s very simple. Freedom is not free. Our rights have been paid for over and over in blood. Our service men and women willingly lay down their lives so that we can continue living in a media obsessed culture. It’s time we do our part, and make sure we are voting in people who will keep those rights alive! You cannot lose what you do know you have! We take our lives for granted every day. So next time you watch YouTube, use Facebook, or speak your opinion freely – remember how lucky we are.
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