Voting, A Political Process

My first significant recollection of the political process was in the 5th grade during the Bush v Gore elections. To make the elections more meaningful to us, our teacher decided to hold a mock voting session where we as students would cast ballots for the next President of the United States of America. Everyone was excited! Everyone that is except for me.

You see it is in the 5th grade where the beginnings of social leprosy occurs. Future nerds, burnouts, popular kids, jocks, and socially awkward band geeks all start their journey towards their future identities at roughly the same time. Even in my un-corrupted-by-social-stigma mind, I subconsciously knew dark times would be in store for if I voted for the enemy. Al Gore.

Never had a name been spat with such disgust than by my 5th grade peers. I had heard every last one of my classmates warn that whoever voted for Al Gore would be pushed off the top of the slide or worse.... It was a fate I did not wish upon my self and I had not developed the cunning brain that years in middle school would soon give me (basically I didn't fully appreciate the concept of lying). There was no way out of this predicament. I just KNEW that if I voted for Al Gore, all of my fellow 5th graders would know.

Fortunately for me, the week before class elections was to occur, I was diagnosed with Appendicitis. Due to my lengthy recovery time, I was unable to attend class and thus forfeited my "right" to vote. When I came back to school on Monday, I discovered the fate of  the four who had voted for ol' Al. They  were hunted down like the "Witches" in Salem and would have suffered severe consequences had we been more like the unfortunate cast in Lord of the Flies.

Lets fast forward to the present with my being able to vote for the 2nd time in my life. Much can be said about the flawed political process but one cant complain if they never even made the effort to go out and vote. I urge all to make your voice heard. Even if those around you see politics differently, when it comes down to it, there is no right or wrong answer. There is just what YOU think is best and who YOU think will best represent what YOU think is right.