What if instead of just checking off a name you had to justify it? Right there on the ballot. But in your own words. It’d still be anonymous but you’d have to vouch for your choice – I pick Mitt Romney because he looks like me and I believe he’s going to keep my taxes low. Or I pick President Obama because he looks like me and he’s going to make sure I have healthcare. But, you can’t make up things or repeat made up things – “I don’t believe the President is really American and I know Mitt Romney is.” Or “I heard Romney is a Mormon which is really a cult.”
During the campaigns I saw footage of people saying the most unbelievable things. Actually they weren’t saying much because they couldn’t articulate their position. They had made up their minds but couldn’t expound on their decision either because they couldn’t publicly give their reason or their reasoning was too faulty to articulate. A lot of crazy shit gets said during Election campaigns and people tend to repeat the soundbites that suit them.
There has been a lot of finger-pointing, and claims that some people voted for Romney only because he’s white, but the sad truth is that there are plenty of people who voted for Obama because he was black. In neither case were those people making informed decisions and that’s the saddest part. I know I’m not talking about the majority of voters but every person with the right to vote has the responsibility to do so mindfully.
In my voter reform fantasy it’s a very simple app. You select your candidate and then write in a maximum of three reasons. If any of your reasons are invalid because of misinformation or discrimination you’re prompted to resubmit your entry. Over time we would have a more informed electorate, perhaps even setting the political agenda instead of mostly reacting to it.
Throughout world history there has been much bloodshed over the right to vote, people have died in pursuit of civil liberties and a democratic voice. As Americans it’s not just important that we exercise our ability to vote, but it’s important that we know why we vote. For those of us previously disenfranchised, we owe it to ourselves to know. As the President said, ” The role of citizen in our democracy does not end with your vote. America’s never been about what can be done for us. It’s about what can be done by us together”. What if we were all citizens 24/7 and not just every four years?
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