A few months back I tore into Burt Prelutsky’s pointless and shameful piece on John Kerry long before the Swift Boat controversy when the only thing conservatives were attacking the senator for were his looks. But today I turn to today’s column to make a point about the purpose of not-voting.
As we come into the home stretch of the presidential campaign, I'd like to suggest that everybody stop pressuring their friends and neighbors to vote. There is absolutely nothing un-American about staying home and minding your own business on Election Day.This is why I’m against voter mobilization movements such as Rock the Vote and P. Diddy’s Vote or Die – because - as Mr. Prelutsky questions: “can you imagine what we're going to wind up with when really dumb people start voting in record numbers?”
Registering to vote should be convenient but not imposed in the same way telemarketers spring at you during dinner. If you don’t muster up the effort to register on your own terms then chances are you aren't a political person nor have much of an interest in our government. Voter movements and campaigns target such people and they're impossible to avoid; just like telemarketers. They gain the most ground on college campuses and ambush students with forms and clipboards just so they can be registered to vote. What does that accomplish? “I registered 15 people today. How many did you reach?” “Ha, I signed up 35. And all I had to do was walk down Sorority Row and pick out the hot blondes. Now they can fulfill their obligations as American citizens!"
0 comments:
Post a Comment