Election Day is tomorrow for those of us in the United States—if the ads, videos, pop-ups, and general hysteria wasn’t a clue.
I was thinking of repeating my “Vote or the Stupid People Win“* post of 2010 , but last Friday, I witnessed something while standing in line for early voting that is amazingly similar to that post,** but was far more satisfying.
I shared it on Facebook at the time, but not all of you FB—or FB with me—and I think it bears repeating:
I stood in line for an hour and twenty minutes to vote today. A woman behind me was complaining constantly to her friends about the wait and being bored and how this was why no one wanted to vote because it was always SUCH an inconvenience.
Finally, a gentleman in front of us in line turned and said in a strongly accented voice, “You know, I think it is wonderful that we are allowed in this country to stand in lines in the open and be bored waiting. The first place I ever voted, we were all too afraid of being taken away and shot.”
There was some applause and no more complaints about the wait.
Furthermore, when a woman came out to tell us that there was no waiting at another place about a mile away, few of us moved. I don’t know why everyone else stayed, but at that moment, I felt privileged to wait.
So please, if you’re able to legally vote, rearrange your schedule and make the effort to have your legal say about how your country is run.
It may be inconvenient, but it’s perfectly safe.
We should all take advantage of that privilege . . . lest we lose it.
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*The lady featured in that post passed away last year. She was an irascible, demanding, exacting patron and I miss her very much.
**I honestly can’t make this stuff up—and I’m really glad I don’t have to.
Earful of Cider 