Every year, since as far back as I can remember, people
have complained about the choices they have when they go to the voting booths.
Of course, the presidential elections always bring the biggest moans of
complaint, which is to be expected. As I grew up and noticed the country
becoming more divided, the complaints about voting became louder. Then when
social media arrived, the complaints were deafening and the divide was wider
than ever before.
I used to enjoy voting and, believe it or not, talking politics
as well. But that was when my social interaction was limited to just my friends
and family. Now that everyone has the ability to either post their opinion or
comment on mine, I find myself shying away from political discourse. I have
also started to realize that voting is just not as much fun as it used to be. I
guess I didn’t realize how much Americans hate Americans. Now that I see it,
the political landscape seems really intimidating.
The idea that a billionaire reality star is a strong
contestant for the White House is not really as bad as it sounds. Ronald Reagan
was a fairly wealthy actor before he turned to politics, but he didn’t run for
president until after some time as the governor of California. Reagan had
plenty of political experience at the executive level before he ran for
president, whereas Trump has none. The fact that a large segment of the
American public cannot see the difference is pretty frightening to me.
Trump is a ruthless business man and a documented liar
(just check out some of the videos on YouTube that catch Trump in the act of
blatantly lying to the American people). Trump supporters brush that off with
the observation that all politicians lie. I agree with that, but most
politicians try to be somewhat subtle about it. Trump basically waves his lying
in front of our faces and tells us to deal with it. With so many people
supporting Trump, it is scary to see how many people like to get kicked in the
groin by Trump while he smiles in their faces.
What about Hillary Clinton? I don’t trust her. I actually
trust Trump more than Hillary. Sure they are both liars, but Trump seems to
revel in it where Hillary is constantly backpedaling to hide what she has done.
She has no respect for government protocol, which means she has no respect for
the American people. Don’t get me wrong, I have no intention on voting for
Trump either. But Hillary had a shot at my vote, which she lost when the emails
started blowing up.
What about Bernie Sanders? I like Bernie, but it is
amazing how many Americans are terrified of the word “socialism” based
completely on the significant amount of marketing Hillary and the GOP has done.
Bernie is a Democratic Socialist, which is not the same thing as a National
Socialist. Bernie’s views are far from communist, and there is plenty of
information on how Bernie intends to pay for his programs. No, he is not going
to arbitrarily raise everyone’s taxes to pay for these programs. If you are
actually interested in Bernie’s ideas, then go to Bernie’s website. If you
would prefer to remain terrified and in the dark, then you have the right to
stay that way.
But, thanks to the Democrats’ incredibly unbalanced
superdelegate program, the presidential race to the general election will be
Hillary versus Trump, and Hillary will win. She even said on CNN a few days ago
that she has plenty of information on Donald Trump that she will use to bury
him during the general election. I believe her, and Trump should too.
But even with all of that, voting is just not fun
anymore. These days, these campaigns are decided weeks in advance. The
mudslinging has gotten so bad that it is now overshadowing the issues. The idea
of voting kind of seems pointless, but I will still do my civic duty come November.
That empty feeling that is voting just makes me worry about where our country
is headed, and who will be behind the wheel when we finally go over the cliff.
George N Root III is a Lockport resident and proud
supporter of what used to be the United States. You can follow him on Twitter
@georgenroot3 or contact him at GeorgeNRoot3@gmail.com.