I'm sure that if you are still reading this blog, you are probably as sick of the campaigning as I am. Bear with me for a few minutes. I'm not going to tell you who I'm voting for, I'm not going to campaign on behalf of any party, or political candidate. What I am going to do is tell you why this election matters.
This election matters, but not in the way you think. I'm sure that the only thing on your mind is Barack Obama or Mitt Romney. I'm here to tell you that honestly you should vote for the candidate that you believe will do the best job, but I'm also going to tell you that your vote for the president almost won't matter. Don't get me wrong, all votes count, and you should really should vote. But the important elections tomorrow aren't for the president. The important elections are local. I'm sure that you will be voting for local judges, state senates, state representatives, mayors, even alderman.
I've struggled with these thoughts for a long time. How can I change the world? What can I, as one person do, to make the world a better place. And I'm here to tell you that local elections are the place to start.
Barack Obama didn't wake up one day, and find himself in a political campaign to be President of the United States of America. No, he woke up one day and wanted to run for the Illinois senate. After that he decided to run for Congress, and finally to run for President. Maybe this was his plan all along. I'm sure it was at some point in his mind, that he wanted to be president of this country. What kid doesn't want to be president one day.
The local elections are more important in the short term and long term. Tired of that road to the interstate full of potholes? Then call you're local mayor, and tell him to fix it. Call your state senator, and tell him you're county needs more road money. They may not listen to you, but this is where local elections matter. You can vote against him, and they will know why you voted against them. You can call the other candidate, and ask him what he intends to do about your bad road. He may still lie to you, but at least you can hold him accountable to his promises. You can't hold national offices accountable. I wish you could, but you are just one of millions of people. Neither Obama, or Romney actually cares about you. They can't. There are too many millions of other people to think about.
I've read that we should think globally, but act locally. That is why this election matters. If you hold your mayor accountable, who knows maybe one day he'll be able to run for president, and then guess what he will care about you. He'll care about millions of others also, but he will know that without the support of the local community, he would still just be a local guy.
In closing, make sure you vote tomorrow. Vote for every office that is on the ballot, but don't just vote because the person has an R or a D next to his name. Go home tonight and look up the local candidates and vote for the one that will do the best job for you. (And if he doesn't, go to his office and explain why he's failing at serving you, he might just change his mind).
Next week: I'll be talking about trapping.
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