November Fourth, Two-Thousand Asian
Dear DISGRASIAN readers,
We know how much you’re looking forward to tomorrow. Maybe it’s because you can’t wait to get your free ice cream cone at Ben and Jerry’s, or your free cup of coffee at Starbucks, or your free doughnut at Krispy Kreme. Maybe because you’ve never voted before, and you can’t wait to be de-virginized. Maybe you really, really, really want an “I Voted” sticker (they’re damn cool). Maybe because you want to be able to watch TV without hearing the words “Bradley effect.” Maybe because you’re tired of Sarah Palin, or Keith Olbermann talking about Sarah Palin, or us talking about unfunny stuff like lynching images, the importance of civil rights, and usage of the word “gook.”
Listen, we want tomorrow to happen more than anybody. We want nothing more than to see an end to our election-anxiety-induced insomnia. I want to have a social life again. I’m sure Jen wants me to stop trying to re-register her to vote, even though she’s been registered 4eva and hasn’t moved AND the deadline in California passed long ago (Hey, you can’t register too many times, right?). We want to spend our evenings playing Guitar Hero 4 (it’s dope), not stressing about constituents. We want to start working on our Inauguration Day outfits! We BOTH want to write about things like pandas, and Bai Ling, parties, low-rider Acuras–things that do matter, but don’t feel as fucking life-and-death as everything seems (and is) in the 2008 election.
We are all different. We land differently on the issues, on the candidates, on this whole godforsaken country (and whether or not it’s UnAmerican and/or “godless” to say that). But where we should all be the same is our willingness to take the time out, to think beyond ourselves, and vote.
If you haven’t voted already, please vote tomorrow. We don’t care who you vote for (that’s a bit of a lie–yes we do), or why you vote, or what you do before and after. But we do care that you vote. We live in a country where voting–a privilege, on many levels–is our right. Our choice. And if we choose to be selfish, ignorant, lazy, or apathetic enough to ignore that right, we are a disgrace to ourselves and our country’s ambitious stab at democracy.
Tomorrow, if you’re waiting in a long line and you’re pissed about it, or if you’re angry at the system because our election process is so fucked (it is), or if you’re stuck on the fact that you hate government and don’t want to play into their silly/bureaucratic/two-party/The-Man-Makes-the-Rules game, please vote anyway. Please think outside of yourself and remember that there are a lot of other people in this country that don’t have the luxury to sit back and watch this country burn. They have lives and families and homes (hopefully) and jobs, and sicknesses, and retirement funds, and stakes–REAL STAKES–that will be directly affected by this election.
We are taking tomorrow off in honor of Election Day (which should be a day off for everyone, anyway), so as not to provide you with any distractions.
Please take the time. Vote. VOTE. VOTE. VOTE. VOTE. VOTE.
Thank you.
Love,
DISGRASIAN
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Photo Source: Magnum Photo
Filed under: Don't Be An Asshole, Election Day, The 2008 Presidential Election, Vote, VOTE NO ON PROP 8
