Archive: Opinions

Tuesday marked New York’s primary for the 2012 election.  As a Democrat, I had to vote for just one race, the 23rd Congressional District.  Three candidates were on the ballot, and Nate Shinagawa won with 60% of the vote.

Primaries are not very exciting.  When they are held in June, you can expect a low turnout.  The weather was breathtakingly spectacular with sunny blue skies and mild temperatures.  The last thing on many voters’ mind was voting in the primary.

I was lucky to hear some of the candidates speak on the WHCU morning news watch.  They seemed well informed on the topics, especially the Natural Gas Debate.  All of them pledged to represent us and were willing to give the Republican incumbent a sounding defeat.

When I arrived at the Polling Station located in the Lansing Town Hall, the election’s official notified me that I was #60.  It was 5:30 pm, and the place was deserted except for a handful of poll workers.  They were pleasant and seemed quite upbeat considering they had been working the polls since 6 am.  The entire event took less than 5 minutes.  By the time the polls closed, some 400 Lansing Democrats had voted.

As I left the Town Hall, I wondered about our democratic process, and asked myself several questions.  First, “What could be more important than exercising the right to vote?” And the second, “What would we do if we lost the right to vote?”

Around the world, people are protesting for the right to have open and free elections. Millions of men and women have risked their lives in protest movements for the chance to vote for their leaders.  In Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, and Burma thousands have died in battle sacrificing their lives for the good of the people.

The right to vote is priceless.  This nation was founded by individuals who believed the right to be governed by elected representatives was the only way to live.  We in the United States have forgotten that and have grown complacent.  We spend endless hours on the Internet blogging or watching reality TV without giving much thought to the actual world around us.  Many live their lives in a purely virtual world ignoring the events that affect them.

Elections are important and so are Primaries.  All of us have a stake in their outcomes.  Our elected officials will determine the way our government leads our nation, state and region. I will admit that I rarely attend town council or planning board meetings, but I do take some time to stay informed.

If you did not get a chance to vote in the primaries, then consider yourself absolved of this transgression.  For your penance, please take some time to study the issues for the November elections and then vote.  If you do not vote, then you do not have the right to complain.  And that is to the point.

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