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September 25, 2006

Top Ten Reasons to Vote on November 7th

Top Ten Reasons to Vote on November 7th

Jack Levine, Founder
4Generations Institute
jack.levine@comcast.net

With the Tuesday, November 7th General Election approaching, I'm eager to share my thoughts about the importance of voting. I believe that voting in a democracy is not just a right, it’s a responsibility. My advocate spirit impels me to inform, inspire, and empower others to participate in this, the most basic of all democracy’s actions.

There are few more influential actions than voting. It’s an activity that takes a few minutes but has meaning for years to come. When I think of the many who struggled, suffered, fought and died for our right to vote, I’m motivated all the more to have my voice be heard.

My Grandma Minnie picketed for suffrage as an immigrant teenage girl in New York. Her daughter, my mother, took me by the hand to watch her and my father vote. My Dad was blind so had to have a poll-watcher vote with him, but he always voted. They listened to the election results at the edge of their seats. Everyone in my family took their civic responsibilities so seriously that it was impossible for me to grow up without that same set of values.

Election Day is a national day of empowerment. It’s a time when all of us, as adult citizens, are truly equal. Irrespective of educational attainment, income, ethnic or racial heritage, gender or political persuasion, we are all able to exercise the single most basic act in a democracy: voting.

How wonderful. How important. How could anyone purposefully miss the opportunity to do the right thing in determining our future?

The pollsters are busy making their case for where voters are leaning. The advertisers are unleashing the flood of commercials, mail fliers and phone calls. The pundits are sharpening their sound bites.

When all the words are said and all the money spent, it's the individual voter who holds the power to decide who will lead our nation, our states, and communities into the future.

I urge you take these words to heart and pledge to make your voice heard. I hope you will take the step to ask another one, ten, or one hundred others to join you as voters.

And you would please honor me by sharing this message with others. Feel free to reply to me with your thoughts about the importance of voting from your vantage point.

TOP TEN REASONS TO VOTE

- In honor of those in our military who courageously fight wars and our law enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency workers who respond to our needs and defend the peace at home. Those who sacrifice their personal well-being in the name of our safety and security deserve our respect. Voting is a way of giving them and their families our vote of confidence in their heroism.

- In honor of those who struggled for civil rights, women’s suffrage, immigrant rights and the ideals of justice for all whose diverse voices are essential for our nation’s moral health and community vitality. Freedom needs affirmation. Voting is a way to assure that our rights are protected by strengthening the voices of those for whom rights are sacred and need to be defended.

- To be a good example to our children and grandchildren by exercising the right to vote as a symbol of our faith in democracy. By voting we send a signal of the importance of the choices we as adults make to secure a better future for ourselves, for our children, and generations who will follow.

- Voting is our society’s great equalizer. No matter our station in life, income, or social status, every citizen over age 18 has the same power of one vote.

- Pollsters do not determine who wins elections; voters do. Predicting the outcome of elections, especially close ones, is at best an inexact science. Pollsters and political pundits have their roles, but like each of us, they only have one vote.

- Elections should not be about negative ads, it should be about the options we all have to promote positive policy actions. Voting for candidates in whom we believe, and for or against ballot initiatives we know will affect our future, is a perfect counterbalance to the flood of negativity polluting the airwaves and mailboxes.

- Voting is now more convenient than ever. Early voting and mail-in balloting are options which can avoid the frustration of lines on November 7th. Florida voters may visit http://election.dos.state.fl.us/index.html and click to learn more about the options for voting available this year. Voters in other states have similar access to elections information to facilitate efficient and effective voting practices.

- It's important to be an informed voter. Pay attention to news reports and editorials about the campaigns. Voting gives all us the chance to make our opinions known in the public policy arena. While how we vote is confidential, the fact that we have voted, or failed to vote, is public record. Elected officials know which individuals and demographic groups are voting, and we who vote are therefore more likely to be influential in policy debates. Non-voters are voiceless and by not participating can become victims of their neglect.

- Regret is preventable. November 8th is one day too late, and "could have, should have" are sorry alternatives to acting. Have a “no excuses” attitude by committing to vote, ask others to join us in voting, and promote a positive approach to making a difference among family, friends and colleagues.

- Be part of making history. Because every indicator points to the prospect that the 2006 election will suffer from an extremely low turnout, every vote is even more important. As a Floridian, I know how close elections can be. Being a participant in affecting history gives each of us a sense of pride in democracy and the power to touch the future.

Democracy is a team sport….and spectators don’t count.

Please join me in sharing this message by forwarding it to your contacts. I implore you to assist the effort to make 2006 a year when powerful voices make a significant difference in the life of our nation and our communities.

“Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world.
In fact, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
--- Margaret Mead, Anthropologist
_______________________
Jack Levine, Founder of 4Generations Institute, has been a professional family policy advocate for 28 years. He may be reached at jack.levine@comcast.net.

Posted by Kristin Carlson at September 25, 2006 10:39 AM

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