I later discovered that the AARP is not attempting to discourage people from voting, it is advocating the importance of making informed decisions on Election Day. The web site claims to provide candidates' unabridged answers to questions on various issues so that voters might learn where the candidates stand on important issues before exercising their right to vote. I am unsure as to whether or not the AARP is relaying accurate, unbiased information to American voters. However, I do believe that we have a responsibility to make ourselves aware of the issues at hand.
Being thousands of miles away from Louisiana, it is very difficult to stay informed on the issues and candidates of my home state. During the last election I struggled with whether I should vote or not, because I did not feel like I knew enough to make an informed decision. Should you vote if you do not know about the issues? There are so many people stressing the importance of voting today that it is easy to get pressured into voting without truly knowing what you are voting for.
When Diddy coined the phrase "Vote or Die," I highly doubt that he meant people should vote regardless of whether they know what they are voting for. The truth is, if you vote without knowing the issues, you are not actually exercising your rights, you are abusing them. I am by no means saying that you must know everything there is about an issue before you cast your vote, but when you vote, you should feel like you are expressing your opinion, not like you are playing eeny-meeny-miney-moe.
How many times have you encountered on a test, "Which one, and why?" What would elections be like if every voter had to give a reason for voting the way he or she did? The voter turnout would certainly drop. I am not at all suggesting that we make this addition to the voting process; it would be absurd. But I believe that every voter who shows up on Election Day should feel obligated to know the answer to that question.
With the right to vote comes the responsibility to make informed decisions. It is our duty to learn as much as we can about relevant issues before marking a ballot. In an ideal world, everyone would know the issues and vote according to his or her own opinions, but this is not a perfect world.
Some people do not care enough or have enough time to look at the issues. I believe that if you care enough, you will make time to inform yourself, and if you do not care enough to take that time, then you should not vote. However, if you choose not to vote, you should not complain about the shortcomings of the government that you did not care enough about to vote against. Hence, properly exercising your right to vote earns you the right to complain about politics, and we all love to complain.
To vote blindly is worse than to abstain. It is to become one of the many who fall for the manipulative whoring techniques too often used in politics, or even worse, to nurture partisanship by blindly clinging to one side. By not learning about the issues before voting, we allow ignorance to be the standard.
It is your responsibility to learn about the issues and exercise your right to vote. Vote to show respect and thankfulness for democracy and freedom, to show your desire to make a difference. However, if your vote is going to be nothing more than a thoughtless gamble, you will be better off following that advice which was at first so infuriating to me. Don't vote!
Mary Doris is a first-year living in James Hall. She runs indoor track and likes chocolate mousse. She is counting down the days to Mardi Gras. Send comments her way at mreggie10@amherst.edu.