Get out and VOTE

Tomorrow is November 8th, 2016. I'm sure all of you know how to read a calendar and are thinking "why are you telling me this?" I'm telling you this because tomorrow is an important day for our country. Tomorrow is Election Day and I'm expecting all of you to go out and vote. Y'all NEED to vote. I don't care if you don't like either of the candidates. If you like your country, you should vote for whoever you think is going to lead it in the best direction. Sure our two leading candidates don't have the best reps or records, but one of them is going to be the leader of our country whether you like it or not, and you might as well throw your vote in to make sure it's not the one you dislike the most. Especially those of you in swing states. Things are close - way too close for comfort. Don't believe me? Take a look at some of this polling info from the NY Times.

Now just recently I finished watching "The West Wing" (yes I watched all 7 seasons). And watching a very political show during a very political year is interesting for quite a few reasons. I just want to start off by saying, no I am not a very political person. I hardly ever talk about politics, I've never really gotten into politics, it's just not my cup of tea. But this past year I've found myself paying more attention to politics - I wrote articles about the Election for my Capstone class, I've actually watched the Debates, and I've even researched candidates' platforms and views online. I did vote in the last election, but I didn't have to do any research because based on the two candidates I knew who I was going to vote for. Now for this election, it isn't that easy. The candidate I felt that really shared my views and was a voice for my generation didn't make it past the primaries. And I think a lot of other millennials will agree with me on that.

Now I won't go into detail on some of the reasons why "The West Wing" was such an interesting watch, and that's because most of these reasons are due to how long ago the show first aired (and therefore the state of our country and it's politics were very different then). The show started in 1999, so pre-9/11, with terrorism (especially domestic terrorism) not being a huge topic, at least not until the last season or two. Immigration was hardly covered, with most of its discussion in the last season, in which the show features a presidential election in which the first Hispanic candidate is running.

And it was this fictional election that I think made watching this show so very interesting in this year. In this fictional election, the two candidates had to fight for their nominations for their respective parties - it was a very close call for both of them. Both candidates tried to connect with the general public, but they also had a few issues that they had particular interest in and wouldn't change their views on them - even if it conflicted with the views of the rest of their party. And I think that's commendable. If you believe something so strongly and have a vision that can actually strengthen our country and you stick with it, that's amazing. I guess you could say our candidates in our real election might have those visions, but I would say their visions are more in hatred of others rather than love for their own country (think their positions on immigration, ISIS, terrorism, foreign trade, etc.).

The other thing that I liked so much about the fictional election in the show was the respect that the candidates had for each other and for the electoral process. In the show there was a REAL debate. The two candidates fully stated their plans and views for the country - no shouting "WRONG" at accusations, blaming the other candidate for lying, repeating their list of endorsements, or completely avoiding a question. They simply answered the questions and said why they thought their plans were better. Why is it so hard to have a debate in real life like that? Aren't TV shows supposed to be more dramatic? Not the other way around? Not only that, but the candidates in the show treated each other as equals. They were both vying for the same spot, and sure did some attack ads, but they also had respect for each other and knew when they were crossing the line.

I have so much more of a respect and understanding for the political leaders of our country after watching "The West Wing." If you really want to understand what our President does and their interaction with the other leaders of our country, this show is a must watch. And now that I do, I realize the importance of who we put into that Oval Office. Take time today to REALLY think about who you believe is the best person to run our country. And then tomorrow, go and vote. Please.