This weekend I sat down with my ballot & the voters guide to vote. I do try to know a little bit about the candidates and issues but will admit to voting party line by default if I am unsure. I also rely on the voters guide that one of the progressive organizations here in Washington State provides because the official state voters guide might as well be written in Japanese.
There were two referendums on the ballot this year that are Big Issues. One I knew immediately how I was going to vote and the other I really wondered about. I am still not certain about my decision.
It is a black & white issue. There doesn't seem to be much middle ground to find, even though that's the whole point of a vote, I realize. There's not a "maybe" category. I really leaned toward voting against it even though Kevin, my coworkers, and many others are in support of it. Everyone seems definitive about it, actually. Except me.
I thought perhaps I was being overly-whatever about it, as "everyone else" is for it. Then I thought Well, following the crowd blindly can be bad as well. I thought about a similar law that is in effect in British Columbia and how my Canadian friends would feel about it. They too would be in support of it.
But I still don't feel good about it. I voted in favor, reasoning it by "it's better for the greater good".
It's just bothering me, the lingering doubt about my vote. I know that it's nothing that is going to negatively impact the world as we know it but still. Sigh..............
Being a grown-up is hard.
1 comment:
I find it difficult but necessary to sustain two conflicting ideas: that my vote is very important---and that my vote is a drop in the ocean. I try to tune in to whichever one helps at the particular moment. In the case of an issue I can't figure out where I stand on, I console myself that my individual vote won't make a difference either way; in the case of an issue I CAN figure out where I stand on, I motivate myself that EVERY VOTE COUNTS.
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