Voting in the Dark
Culture, identity politics 8:36 AM
by Jessica Osman of Drawnlines Politics.
Have you heard of the television show Dating in the Dark? Three women and three men move into a house together and date one another. The twist is that they date in a dark room and do not get to see what the other person looks like. I sometimes wish that we could vote this way too – candidates campaigning with paper bags over their heads or going on television with giant blue dots over their faces. Obviously, I know it is not realistic, however, it is too easy to vote based on appearances and demographics or even straight down a party line without ever taking the time to get to know the candidates or where they stand.
Taking a hard look at the candidates and voting based on the individual and the issues is especially important with the upcoming elections in Florida. There is a lot of diversity on the different tickets and voters should look into the candidates and look past their sex, skin color, sexual orientation and even party affiliation.
On Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink’s website there is a page dedicated to the grassroots movement “Women for Sink”. While it is fantastic that we have a woman running for governor, women should not vote for Ms. Sink merely because she is also a woman. If you believe she is the best candidate – great, support her as much as possible. On the other hand, if you do not think she is the best candidate that is OK too; you should not be branded as an anti-feminist because you do not support one female candidate. The same goes for African-American candidates such as Kendrick Meek and Allen West and Hispanic-American candidates such as Marco Rubio. To vote for one of them because you share a racial or ethnic background actually does the candidate himself a disservice. They might argue a vote is a vote, but these candidates have varying experiences that would make them qualified to lead and represent Floridians despite what their heritage might be. Do not sell your intelligence as a voter short.
When asked why they are the best candidate for the job and why people should vote for them we have yet to hear a candidate say “…because I am a woman/man/black/Hispanic/Jewish/gay/purple/fat/skinny/tall”. These should not be factors in who people vote for. Take a moment to educate yourself on who is running and what they stand for. Ignore them as a person and even ignore the letter after their name and just see what they are saying they will do, how they will do it and what they have done in previous positions. This way, you will not surprised when someone does exactly what they said they were going to do and if they do not live up to their promises you actually know it and can take a stance to get them to reform or to vote them out in the next cycle.
If you are going to vote, you owe it to yourself and your community to do a little research because your vote actually has an effect. Vote for the candidate that will fight for you, lead you and represent you the best.
Check us out on FACEBOOK
Have you heard of the television show Dating in the Dark? Three women and three men move into a house together and date one another. The twist is that they date in a dark room and do not get to see what the other person looks like. I sometimes wish that we could vote this way too – candidates campaigning with paper bags over their heads or going on television with giant blue dots over their faces. Obviously, I know it is not realistic, however, it is too easy to vote based on appearances and demographics or even straight down a party line without ever taking the time to get to know the candidates or where they stand.
Taking a hard look at the candidates and voting based on the individual and the issues is especially important with the upcoming elections in Florida. There is a lot of diversity on the different tickets and voters should look into the candidates and look past their sex, skin color, sexual orientation and even party affiliation.
On Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Alex Sink’s website there is a page dedicated to the grassroots movement “Women for Sink”. While it is fantastic that we have a woman running for governor, women should not vote for Ms. Sink merely because she is also a woman. If you believe she is the best candidate – great, support her as much as possible. On the other hand, if you do not think she is the best candidate that is OK too; you should not be branded as an anti-feminist because you do not support one female candidate. The same goes for African-American candidates such as Kendrick Meek and Allen West and Hispanic-American candidates such as Marco Rubio. To vote for one of them because you share a racial or ethnic background actually does the candidate himself a disservice. They might argue a vote is a vote, but these candidates have varying experiences that would make them qualified to lead and represent Floridians despite what their heritage might be. Do not sell your intelligence as a voter short.
When asked why they are the best candidate for the job and why people should vote for them we have yet to hear a candidate say “…because I am a woman/man/black/Hispanic/Jewish/gay/purple/fat/skinny/tall”. These should not be factors in who people vote for. Take a moment to educate yourself on who is running and what they stand for. Ignore them as a person and even ignore the letter after their name and just see what they are saying they will do, how they will do it and what they have done in previous positions. This way, you will not surprised when someone does exactly what they said they were going to do and if they do not live up to their promises you actually know it and can take a stance to get them to reform or to vote them out in the next cycle.
If you are going to vote, you owe it to yourself and your community to do a little research because your vote actually has an effect. Vote for the candidate that will fight for you, lead you and represent you the best.
Check us out on FACEBOOK
Posted by Nick Stone
on 8:36 AM.
Filed under
Culture,
identity politics
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Really enjoyed reading this post! You have some excellent points... too bad the TV was first introduced into politics lol! We've gotten too concerned with image over issues, although if that wasn't the case I wouldn't have a job.