Do your duty

I went to vote yesterday. It only took me five minutes to drive to SportsCom (one of the two places in Rutherford County TN) where you can early vote. There were about 30 people outside the door. I took my place at the end of the line and endured the chill breeze blowing, glad I had worn a sweatshirt.

From just looking around at the other voters standing in line, I guesstimated the split between male and female was about 50-50. Three voters had small children with them. All three were women. If I assume they were housewives, is that sexist? Anyway, didn't see any dads with kids in tow. It took about five minutes for the me to get inside the building and by the time I did, I'd say there were another 30 people lined up behind me.

Inside I'd say there was another fifty or so people checking in, waiting to vote, or voting. Saw a couple of college students studying as they waited in line. An older gentlemen behind me mumbled that it reminded him of being in the army. I turned and remarked that at least we wouldn't get half a dozen shots once we made it to the front of the line and we started talking. He was 73 years old and told me he thought all politicians were crooks but was coming to vote because of the two proposed constitutional amendments. #1 would define marriage as the union between one man and one woman. #2 would freeze property taxes for homeowners once they reach the age of 65. He was voting yes to both. Can't say I didn't agree with him on all counts. About the crooks and the amendments.

Anyway. I showed the lady behind the counter my valid Tennessee driver's license. Said, "Yes ma'am," when she asked if I still lived on Ashlawn Drive, took my printout to another table, signed my name in two places, watched as the witness signed her initials, then took my place at the end of another line. 30 minutes later I was walking out the door, my civic duty as a responsible American completed.

The entire process took, oh......an hour. And you know what? On the drive to Sportscom, I didn't worry about an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) blowing me off the road. While I was waiting in line (both outisde in the cool breeze and once in the door) not a single shot was fired at me nor did I think for a second that the person in the long coat walking up might be a suicide bomber. Once I was finished and on my way home, I didn't have to worry that someone would see my purple, ink stained fingers and drag me out of my truck at a stop sign and shoot me in the back of the head.
And all the way home I was thinking that in Afghanistan and Iraq, men AND women, have to face the exact dangers I just described, but they still turn out by the millions, thanks to hundreds of thousands of young American boys (and young women too) who have fought (and sometimes died) over the last five years to make sure they at least had the opportunity to make their voices heard.

How many Americans to you think would vote if they had to face the same dangers? How about you? Would you vote if you had to dip your fingers in purple ink, knowing that it might get you killed on the way home?

Let me ask an easier question. Will you vote on November 7th? Or will an hour be too much time to take out of your day? Or will it be too cold, or rainy, or just too darn inconvenient? Or like the gentlemen behind me in line, do you think all politicians are crooks and you just don't give a hoot which one is in office?

If you hold any of the above opinions, do yourself a favor. Watch the news between now and next Tuesday. Count how many Americans die in Iraq. Last month it was 105. They won't ever get to vote again. Whether you believe it or not, one of the reasons they died was so that someone else could vote, so that you could vote. If you can face yourself in the mirror November 8th, knowing that, and still having not voted....maybe you need to take a minute and reflect on what being an American really means.

Do your duty. Go vote.