Primarily Upsetting

All day various Chicago news outlets were discussing the low voter turnout for the fifth congressional district's special election. The fifth congressional district previously was represented by Rahm Emmanuel, but since he's gone off to help the president run the country, a special election was held. A special election. What a novel idea. Don't know why that wasn't considered for other vacant seats? (I'm looking at you Roland Burris!)

Some early reports said voter turnout for this special election primary vote was expected to be around 10 percent of November's turnout. It is disappointing to see that less than four months after thousands of people stood in line to vote in this district, only about one in six registered voters made it back.

What's even more upsetting to me is that I am one of the five that did not show up. I knew there was an election today, but never bothered to see if Rahm Emanuel was my congressman. I learned he was only too late to do anything about it. As Mike and I drove by our polling place on our way home from work, it was very much open. I had enough time to cast a vote (roughly 25 minutes), but hadn't done my civic duty. The only name I knew was that of the candidate my alderman asked me consider. And while I like Gene (he sends very informative, weekly emails), I can't go on his word alone.

In the end, I did not vote. I do feel bad about this and utterly stupid for not actually looking into this race beforehand. I had listened to plenty of news reports regarding this election but never once took the time to do my research. If I had, I would have seen that not only do I live in this district, but that there were plenty of candidates - probably one I would have even wanted to elect. One thing I know now as the result of this post is that the special general election is April 7. I will be voting then.

I keeping wondering though , should I have gone? Is it better to cast an uninformed vote than it is to cast no vote at all?

In the spirit of democracy, what would you have done: A) Voted or B) Not voted C) Gotten your shit together beforehand and made an informed vote.

Say It Ain't So

Every evening on my way to the train station I cross a bridge over the Chicago River. And almost every evening on the bridge come rain or shine, sleet or snow there is a man banging away on a homemade set of drums. He's pretty good, this man with his drumsticks and plastic buckets. He always does his best to get the passersby involved by chanting "Go! Go! Go! Go!" or shouting something topical at a pause, like "Cubs win!" or "It's the weekend!" (on Fridays). Today it was "Blagojevich sucks!" Pretty fitting on the day when our governor was hauled into court by the feds. See, he's topical.

For any of you who did not catch any portion of any news segment today, Illinois' governor Rod Blagojevich and his Chief of Staff John Harris were arrested at their homes around 6:15 a.m. on fraud and conspiracy charges for things like.... well, oh, you know nothing too big he thinks. Well except the gov he a huge fan of bribery. He then well he tried to get dissenting editors of the Chicago Tribune fired in exchange for help with the sale of Wrigley Field (owned by the Tribune) to the state. He also threatened to rescind state funds to a children's hospital because he didn't get the $50,000 in campaign contributions he wanted

The worst by far though was his attempted sale of the president-elect's vacant senate seat - a seat he and he alone can fill via appointment. His pay to play agenda for this seat was the straw that broke the camel's back. The feds had been investigating the gov for more than three years and his comments regarding this seat were what sent the feds to his home. According to Blagojevich, this seat was his golden goose. In his words, "(It's) a f*cking valuable thing. You just don't give it away. ... I've got this thing, and it's f*cking golden." Aside from a corrupt moral character, he's also got a bit of a potty mouth.

As a Chicagoan, it's embarrassing. I am incredibly proud to live where I live. Nov. 4 was an amazing day for this city and the state of Illinois. To have our image tarnished a little more than month later makes me angry. My mother called me tonight to talk about pretty boy Rod's arrest. My Michigander mom, fresh off Detroit's coverage of Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's obstruction of justice conviction, pointed out that at least Michigan's corrupt politics stay at the city level. We're big time here in Chicago though. Our corrupt politics are statewide!

But the really embarrassing part is that Blagojevich ran on a election platform of cleaning up corrupt Illinois politics. This was a winning slogan because his predecessor, former Illinois governor, George Ryan, is barely into the second year of his 6.5 year jail sentence on federal corruption charges. It cannot be proven that Illinois is the most corrupt state in the U.S but as Robert Grant, special agent at the FBI Chicago office said today, "If it isn't the most corrupt state in the United States, it's certainly one hell of a competitor."

As I listened to NPR today, coverage of the governor's arrest was thorough. It was the second story on the BBC's 10 a.m. new hour, for Pete's sake. This overabundance of coverage left me a bit peeved as I walked home, so that's why as I passed over the Chicago River on my way to the train I couldn't help but shout out "Blagojevich sucks!" during the drummer man's pause. I still think this is an amazing city in a wonderful state. Most days I will talk up its attributes to anyone who'll listen but today it was easier to scream that in fact our governor does sucks.

The Junior Senator From Illinois

He is our president-elect. And I and the city of Chicago could not be more proud. (See photo at right - taken on my lunch hour this afternoon.)

For those of you wondering, no I did not make it to Grant Park last night. Mike and I decided instead on a dive-y punk bar that was far enough away from madness in downtown Chicago. (Our co worker's band was playing at said bar.) I don't find myself in too many punk bars, but last night as the results came rolling in and we cheered in unison around two small TV sets, it felt right. I saw grown men cry and same-sex couples embrace at the news that Obama had surpassed the 270 electoral votes he needed. It was a beautiful moment - one that left me with a lump in my throat.

I realize not everyone shares my or my city's almost singular enthusiasm for the president-elect. About 56 million people, in fact, do not share this enthusiasm. However if you are in that 56 million, I offer you this slice of hope.

My sister sent me an email this morning. Her boys, 6- and 8-years-old, voted in a mock election at their school yesterday. She coaxed them awake this morning by asking if they wanted to see who one the election. As they watched the news, Jordan, the 6-year-old, says "Yup, Obama won." My sister tried to impress upon her young son the significance of this news. "Jordan, this is a huge moment that he won," she said. Jordan's bored response was "Yeah, yeah, I know ..... the first brown president." As my sister said his dismissal (while funny) is a reminder that her boys are growing up in a generation where the color of some one's skin is not newsworthy.

That right there is hope and a change we can believe in. And I think everyone can agree, regardless of party lines, that hope is a beautiful thing.

I Did It

And so should you.

Those Other Folks

With so much attention being paid to the presidential ticket, it's easy to forget there is a whole other slew of candidates running for state and local offices. If you're like me, you've paid little to no attention to whom may or may not become your new state senator. I am not one of the millions of people who have taken advantage of early voting, so I'll be voting tomorrow and paying the consequence by waiting however long I am destined to wait.

Given that I haven't voted yet though, I have time to cram and make some educated decisions about all those other folks running for elected offices. What's that you say, you need to cram too? May I suggest a Web site: Project Vote Smart. May I also suggest typing in your zip code on the left hand side. It's the easiest way to locate your local races.

Happy cramming!

And lastly....

VOTE.

A Taxing Political Season

I am watching the second presidential debate right now. There is a lot of talk of taxes, and with so many figures being thrown around it is hard to determine how either candidate's tax plan will directly effect your wallet. I was reading of the many political Web sites I peruse these days, and I stumbled across a page about the candidates' tax plans. This Web site lays out in black and white how McCain's tax plan will benefit you versus Obama's. Check it out: http://www.electiontaxes.com/.

Plug in your numbers to see what the candidates will (or won't) do for your bottom line. Seeing as I own nothing nor am really invested in anything, this page was easy for me to fill out. If you happen to own things or have a lot of money invested, it may take you longer, but I think it is worth reviewing.

Also as a note, while watching the presidential debate I have this page open. It helps keep things light. Plus fodder is always fun and really goes hand-in-hand with politics.

Rooted in the Issues

My voter registration card reads Illinois resident. With that designation, I realize my vote will not have as great an impact as say if I lived in Pennsylvania, Nevada, Florida, Ohio or Michigan.

I did live in Michigan. The first 24 years of my life were spent as a Michigan resident, so it pains me to see what terrible times the state has faced over the past few years. It's hard to hear about its sinking economy, its staggering job losses, its corrupt political leaders and not think of how many wonderful memories I have rooted within Michigan's borders.

Michigan is watching this election very closely and with good reason. In this election, yes a Michigan vote will count more than my Illinois vote, but I know if I were still in Michigan my worries would also be greater than they are here in Chicago. To sum up why Michigan needs a strong president, I direct you to this article I came across today. It demonstrates not only why this election is to vital to Michigan's prosperity, but also why Michigan is so important to the county's as well. And yes, I am biased because Michigan is very important to me.

This article also reiterated for me something I have felt strongly about in regard to this election. First, please vote. But secondly, please vote for your candidate because of the good you think they can do for the country. Do not vote for a candidate because of their race. Do not vote for a candidate because of their gender. Do not vote for a candidate because their sound bites are more catchy, more memorable. These things are simply too superficial during such a critical time in our country's history. Vote for your candidate because he takes a stand on an issue that is important to you. Vote your candidate because you think the plans they have for this country will benefit you and the people you love. Be able to argue why their plans for the country are in line with your convictions. And if your convictions tied to your choice for the next president are anything less than issue-specific this election becomes about as substantive as a People magazine Who Wore it Best poll. We all deserve better than that.

Sexism on SNL

In case you missed it, this is probably the funniest thing I have seen on SNL in quite some time. And if you have seen it, it's worth watching again.

Educated Voters

I was looking at this Web site today and came across the following article. In it are links to Education Week's articles about Obama's and McCain's education platforms. The articles are a bit out of date (pre-primary decisions), but give some insight into the candidates' past stance on education. And as the author states, their previous eduction reform efforts may be the best insight into their future endeavors.

So if education is one of your issues, here is their take on Obama and their take on McCain.

I've Got Issues

(In keeping with all things politics..)

To argue successfully your choice for president, you need to first know where the candidates stand on the issues, and really which issues you deem most important. How does McCain plan to improve education? What is Obama's stance on foreign relations? How much will McCain's plan tax you versus Obama's plan? How does each candidate plan to solve the energy crisis and lessen our dependence on foreign oil? Which candidate's platform do you see as having a greater impact on stimulating the United States depressed economy?

Any idea?

The best place to start is to go straight to the source. I present, the McCain-Palin platform and the Obama-Biden platform.

Read away. Refer to these pages as often as need be. I cannt count how many times I've visited them myself.

And if for you, the environment and energy exploration are hot topics, I urge you to check out this NPR interview with Thomas Friedman. His interview does an excellent job at summing up the candidates' stances on the environment and energy and explaining why this issue merits our attention. As a side note, Friedman is an incredibly talented and intelligent author who wrote The World Is Flat, one of the most eye-opening books I have ever read.

Getting Political

One of my goals for 2008 was to make an educated choice for president. As the political season heats up, I have found myself engrossed in all things presidential.

I don't want to make my personal political stance on this blog. Those of you who know me probably have an idea of who I'm voting for. And yes, I already know who I am voting for. However, that is not stopping me from researching all I can about the candidates to make sure my decision is an informed one. I've hear people arguing politics a lot these days, but most o the time I feel like they are arguing the points of a popularity contest versus the changes each candidate will make upon their election to this most highest title. I want to argue issues. I want to argue policy and I want to be sure I understand what each candidate's policies mean for the country before I open my mouth.

In an effort to educate myself, I've come across a lot of good information via the Internet, and I hope to come across a lot more in the months to come. As it is my hope to make an informed presidential selection, I hope I am not alone. To do my part this political season I plan to pass along to you, dear Internet, anything I find as a credible, helpful source of information.

To start, here are two Web sites I'm checking on a weekly, if not daily basis. As politics go, a lot is said, not all of it true. The following Web sites are good for sorting fact from fiction:
FactCheck.org
PolitiFact.org

Please feel free to pass along any good reading you've found regarding your election selection. I am open to any and all suggestions.