24 May 2006

Blue State/Red State

Yesterday was primary election day. The whole thing is quite annoying. It is virtually impossible to find information about the candidates and where they stand on the issues. Frugaldad and I spent quite some time dialed up on the dub-ya dub-ya dub-ya trying to figure out which candidates were the best (or at least the better of the bad) choices. It bothers me how the candidate with the most money usually wins, because s/he makes the most posters, road signs, television commercials, and postcards. Since their name is familiar, they get the votes. The candidates who actually believe in the same things I do rarely get elected because they don't get as many donations as the career politicians who end up compromising everyone's values once they get elected. I got online to check the results early this morning and only a couple of the people I voted for won their races. Oh well.

A funny story, though, from when I went to vote. I had the three girls with me. I parked the van, and as I unbuckled everyone a couple young guys in a Jeep pulled into the space next to me. I could hear them talking and laughing. As I walked behind them to go in to vote, I heard one of them say "We'll make this a blue state one vote at a time." I couldn't resist. I said, loud enough for them to hear, "I doubt it!" And as I walked away, one of them called "Not with an attitude like that!"

I think that means they assumed I was a pessimistic blue voter. Maybe it was my age? Or the fact that I had little kids with me and I drive a van like a soccer mom? What I really am? A red voter in a red state, and I'm not quite rude enough to have told them to take their blue votes back to California where they came from.

No comments: