Get Out and Vote
November 4, 2008 by dr. lam
Get Out and Vote
Need I say more? I will not disclose my political affiliations as this blog is meant to be free of both religious and political overtones (no fights, right?). I will say that I am not a very “political” person and hate engaging in political debate. However, I think we all should get out there (in the U.S.) and do our civic duty to make our voice heard and to participate in our glorious democracy.
Coming from another country and being naturalized as a United States Citizen during my teenage years makes my citizenship more acutely aware for me than for many who were born here and take that right for granted. My parents moved from Hong Kong back to the United States when I was 3 years old specifically so that I could enjoy the freedoms that the U.S. would offer me. Obviously, there are many great countries out there, but my parents chose this one for my upbringing.
Last week on Thursday I cast my ballot during early voting in Texas. Let me tell you a little of the saga I went through to actually vote. First, I went to a township called Addison which based on my computer was where I was registered and only 15 minutes away from my office. After a 30-minute wait in line I got to the front of the line where the lady asked, “Do you still live at the address where you registered?” I said, “No.” That led to me talking to the judge, who denied me (and the lady in front of me) the right to vote in Dallas county. I was informed that I would have to go to Denton, my current place of residence. I plugged in the address on my GPS and headed northward. The GPS indicated that my travel time would be 30 minutes, leaving at 5:50 pm during traffic to make my arrival at 6:20 pm (assuming no traffic) with polls closing at 7 pm. I had to go to that location because I had to vote what was called Limited Ballot, meaning I could not vote for officials in Denton County, which was fine with me. Fortunately, there was not heavy traffic but by 6:40 pm, I realized my GPS had taken me into a blind cul-de-sac, and I was afraid that I would not make it. I called the Denton location moderately panicked and then plugged in the nearest cross street into my GPS that the lady gave me and my GPS read arrival time 6:50 pm. I made it there with a combined GPS and verbal navigation at 6:55 pm to vote, 5 minutes before the polls closed. With an accident in front of me and closed lanes coming back southbound, I faced an hour and a half traffic making my voting experience a 3 and a half hour journey that did not even involve extensive lines!
I hope all of you will have a more pleasant experience than I and get out there and vote!
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