Just over two months to go. The bombardments of political rhetoric in the battle for the presidency have yet to peak. The assaults on anyone’s sense-making abilities have many voters spinning this way and that, wondering where truth resides … or if such a thing exists when votes are at stake.
At this point, one’s vote should not be a matter of being Republican or Democrat (though for many it is), but rather of being American. One need not be a nuclear physicist to know our country is in a dicey place, that what is happening in the world at-large is even dicier.
The strength of having different political parties can benefit all voters who think for themselves.
The media, ideally, is meant to facilitate that responsibility, to offer unbiased reporting of what is happening, what is being said and what choices voters face this time around. (The operative word here is “ideally.”)
The Talking Heads can have their say; the candidates can make the most of photo-ops, video/sound bites, spins and speeches. But it is one voter in a booth on Election Day that makes the most important noise. Thus, no vote should be wasted or cast thoughtlessly.
Much has been said about transparency in this race. That is just another way of asking to see and hear and know the truth. But the truth these days, politically speaking, is opaque at best and that is where the work lies for every voter.
Perhaps the best advice for them might be to 1) consider all the candidates, the crucial issues and what is being sold; 2) claim and keep an open mind; 3) ask questions of anyone with an opinion, not necessarily to seek answers but certainly insights; 4) claim and take care of the truth within one’s self to vote one’s conscience; and 5) after voting, say a prayer for our country, our government and the world at-large.
Responsible voters know that the truth is not “out there” but “within”; that in this government “of the people, by the people and for the people,” every healthy voice has a right to have its say, to be heard.
Those who think one vote cannot make a difference do not understand how democracy works or how powerful one’s truth in concert with others’ can be.
Ours is a land of many freedoms, and nothing deserves freedom more than the truth of self. Every vote needs to honor that, as well as this land we call ours.