2016 Election Reflection
My heart is deeply troubled. After 20+ years of ignoring Presidential elections and feeling helpless in the process we call "democracy", I have come to realize just how important my vote is. My voice has a purpose in this election process. Your voice has a purpose in this process. Yet, why do I still feel so helpless this time around?
I decided to talk through my concerns in a way that often helps me reflect and make important decisions - through writing. I encourage all of you to take a moment to reflect on your own concerns and opinions as well. It is our American duty to create a better world for our families and future generations. This election year will go down in history books as one of the most critical and pivotal elections of all time. Please take your responsibility to vote seriously. And please weigh all of our options with a clear conscious and an open mind, learning everything you can about all of the candidates before walking into that voting booth to do your duty as an American citizen.
One of the reasons my heart has been troubled recently is the constant news of murders, mass shootings, terrorism, and other hateful, terrible happenings. Police brutality is surfacing as a severely racist endeavor to control black populations. Government officials are being caught stealing money from hard-working tax payers. High-ranking officials are being accused of terrible dealings across the world, including supplying terrorists with weapons and refusing to provide security for U.S. representatives in every nation where a U.S. citizen is working.
But, hasn't all of this craziness been happening for years? Decades? Maybe even centuries? I honestly believe it has. The main difference is now we have truly instant access to the news through social media and mobile devices. We can watch a random traffic stop turn into a senseless murder as it is happening simply because a person walking by the scene happened to decide to record it on his phone! And then he posts it to the Internet. And then the video is shared by millions of others on social media as a way to voice outrage, solidarity, confusion, pain, support, or any other feeling that we have after watching someone die simply for having a broken taillight.
My heart is deeply troubled because we are allowing our world to ruin our perspectives on humanity. What I mean is, the constant focus on everything negative is fueling our lives anymore. If you pull up any social media or actual media website (or watch the news on TV), the verbal attacks on everything from how a person dresses, to what someone said about their child, to nitpicking someone's verbiage when they gave a public speech... it is almost all negative! What happened to the old adage, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."?
But, I am not throwing stones from a glass house. My house is built out of those stones. I am just as guilty as the next person. Read my FB posts or Twitter tweets about Trump for President. The man truly terrifies me. But, I have taken the time to watch his speeches, I have researched his "plans" to make America great again... yet after hours of trying to understand his perspectives and objectives, I have utterly no clue what he stands for, other than himself. Trump's blatant racist comments peppered throughout his speeches make me physically ill. It feels like he honestly doesn't believe he is racist, yet much of what he purports is only deepening the racial divide in our country.
Last night, in response to feeling hopeless and concerned about the race issues still breaking down our nation, I decided to watch the movie Selma for a burst of inspiration. I cried. I cried out of disgust for the hateful treatment of black Americans. I cried out of sorrow for the many lives that were lost in the long fight for true equality, regardless of the color of one's skin. I cried out of fear that what I was watching on that screen (depicted from 50 years ago) looked eerily similar to what I had seen just months ago happening in cities across America. The inspiration I had been seeking appeared only as hopelessness.
One thing I noticed in the movie, however, was the placement of the Confederate flag. Every time I see that flag, my heart stops a beat. But, I honestly don't know why... other than it represents racism in my mind. So, after seeing tons of Confederate flags being flown in support of Donald Trump, I decided I needed to learn more about its symbolism. And, yes, it has a strong history of representing racism from the Civil War era, but it also shares meaning for many families whose ancestors were lost while fighting that war. However, I have to believe that Trump supporters who choose to fly their flag today are not doing so out of respect for a lost loved one from the 1800's. Right?
Ok, so for many years, I chose to stay ignorant of politics because of how insulting candidates can be toward one another. I always felt the "issues" were never discussed in lieu of hateful name-calling. Well, that clearly still happens. But now, with technology like the Internet, I can spend my time researching the candidates and their positions on issues that are important to me. I don't have to watch disturbing debates, where nothing valuable is really discussed. I don't have to listen to commercials that pit one political party against another. Nope! I can simply take my own time to research information that the candidates are sharing. It's a beautiful thing.
My heart is still uncertain about the way to cast my vote this November. I am 100% certain I will NOT be supporting Donald Trump. But I have other, less-terrifying, concerns about Hillary Clinton. In her years as a servant to this nation, she has certainly contributed much more than she has taken away. However, I have real questions about her ability to understand national security after the whole private email debacle. And I have real questions about her integrity after she lied openly about not using her personal email for government business.
But I guess the real question is this: Do I vote for Hillary to keep Donald out of office, or do I follow my gut and vote for the Libertarian representative Gary Johnson, whose philosophies are most closely aligned with my own? By voting for a lesser-known candidate, does that increase Donald's chances of winning? By voting for Hillary, will that help to make history with America's first female President?
Ahhh!!! There are so many things to consider when deciding which name to cast on that ballot. I do know this, though. I will continue to pay attention to the messages being shared by each candidate, from their own mouths. I will continue to research websites and learn about each candidate's history of decision-making, contributions to society, and philosophies on issues that are important to me and the future of this nation. I will listen to others' perspectives on why they support different candidates as a way to help fill in any blanks that my own research may create. I will continue to reflect on this 2016 Presidential election until the moment I walk into my voting location on November 8th and choose who I feel will be the best person to run this country I am grateful to call "home".
References:
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/06/22/416548613/the-complicated-political-history-of-the-confederate-flag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxhyzPUHQQw
http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2015/03/05/selma-real-life-vs-movie/24444003/
http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/30/trump-gloves-come-off-carroll-dnt-ac.cnn
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/27/us/politics/what-we-know-about-hillary-clintons-private-email-server.html?_r=0
I decided to talk through my concerns in a way that often helps me reflect and make important decisions - through writing. I encourage all of you to take a moment to reflect on your own concerns and opinions as well. It is our American duty to create a better world for our families and future generations. This election year will go down in history books as one of the most critical and pivotal elections of all time. Please take your responsibility to vote seriously. And please weigh all of our options with a clear conscious and an open mind, learning everything you can about all of the candidates before walking into that voting booth to do your duty as an American citizen.
One of the reasons my heart has been troubled recently is the constant news of murders, mass shootings, terrorism, and other hateful, terrible happenings. Police brutality is surfacing as a severely racist endeavor to control black populations. Government officials are being caught stealing money from hard-working tax payers. High-ranking officials are being accused of terrible dealings across the world, including supplying terrorists with weapons and refusing to provide security for U.S. representatives in every nation where a U.S. citizen is working.
But, hasn't all of this craziness been happening for years? Decades? Maybe even centuries? I honestly believe it has. The main difference is now we have truly instant access to the news through social media and mobile devices. We can watch a random traffic stop turn into a senseless murder as it is happening simply because a person walking by the scene happened to decide to record it on his phone! And then he posts it to the Internet. And then the video is shared by millions of others on social media as a way to voice outrage, solidarity, confusion, pain, support, or any other feeling that we have after watching someone die simply for having a broken taillight.
My heart is deeply troubled because we are allowing our world to ruin our perspectives on humanity. What I mean is, the constant focus on everything negative is fueling our lives anymore. If you pull up any social media or actual media website (or watch the news on TV), the verbal attacks on everything from how a person dresses, to what someone said about their child, to nitpicking someone's verbiage when they gave a public speech... it is almost all negative! What happened to the old adage, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."?
But, I am not throwing stones from a glass house. My house is built out of those stones. I am just as guilty as the next person. Read my FB posts or Twitter tweets about Trump for President. The man truly terrifies me. But, I have taken the time to watch his speeches, I have researched his "plans" to make America great again... yet after hours of trying to understand his perspectives and objectives, I have utterly no clue what he stands for, other than himself. Trump's blatant racist comments peppered throughout his speeches make me physically ill. It feels like he honestly doesn't believe he is racist, yet much of what he purports is only deepening the racial divide in our country.
Last night, in response to feeling hopeless and concerned about the race issues still breaking down our nation, I decided to watch the movie Selma for a burst of inspiration. I cried. I cried out of disgust for the hateful treatment of black Americans. I cried out of sorrow for the many lives that were lost in the long fight for true equality, regardless of the color of one's skin. I cried out of fear that what I was watching on that screen (depicted from 50 years ago) looked eerily similar to what I had seen just months ago happening in cities across America. The inspiration I had been seeking appeared only as hopelessness.
One thing I noticed in the movie, however, was the placement of the Confederate flag. Every time I see that flag, my heart stops a beat. But, I honestly don't know why... other than it represents racism in my mind. So, after seeing tons of Confederate flags being flown in support of Donald Trump, I decided I needed to learn more about its symbolism. And, yes, it has a strong history of representing racism from the Civil War era, but it also shares meaning for many families whose ancestors were lost while fighting that war. However, I have to believe that Trump supporters who choose to fly their flag today are not doing so out of respect for a lost loved one from the 1800's. Right?
Ok, so for many years, I chose to stay ignorant of politics because of how insulting candidates can be toward one another. I always felt the "issues" were never discussed in lieu of hateful name-calling. Well, that clearly still happens. But now, with technology like the Internet, I can spend my time researching the candidates and their positions on issues that are important to me. I don't have to watch disturbing debates, where nothing valuable is really discussed. I don't have to listen to commercials that pit one political party against another. Nope! I can simply take my own time to research information that the candidates are sharing. It's a beautiful thing.
My heart is still uncertain about the way to cast my vote this November. I am 100% certain I will NOT be supporting Donald Trump. But I have other, less-terrifying, concerns about Hillary Clinton. In her years as a servant to this nation, she has certainly contributed much more than she has taken away. However, I have real questions about her ability to understand national security after the whole private email debacle. And I have real questions about her integrity after she lied openly about not using her personal email for government business.
But I guess the real question is this: Do I vote for Hillary to keep Donald out of office, or do I follow my gut and vote for the Libertarian representative Gary Johnson, whose philosophies are most closely aligned with my own? By voting for a lesser-known candidate, does that increase Donald's chances of winning? By voting for Hillary, will that help to make history with America's first female President?
Ahhh!!! There are so many things to consider when deciding which name to cast on that ballot. I do know this, though. I will continue to pay attention to the messages being shared by each candidate, from their own mouths. I will continue to research websites and learn about each candidate's history of decision-making, contributions to society, and philosophies on issues that are important to me and the future of this nation. I will listen to others' perspectives on why they support different candidates as a way to help fill in any blanks that my own research may create. I will continue to reflect on this 2016 Presidential election until the moment I walk into my voting location on November 8th and choose who I feel will be the best person to run this country I am grateful to call "home".
References:
http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/06/22/416548613/the-complicated-political-history-of-the-confederate-flag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxhyzPUHQQw
http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/movies/2015/03/05/selma-real-life-vs-movie/24444003/
http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/30/trump-gloves-come-off-carroll-dnt-ac.cnn
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/27/us/politics/what-we-know-about-hillary-clintons-private-email-server.html?_r=0
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