11th Congressional District Special Primary – September 5, 2012

August 27, 2012  PLYMOUTH EAGLE.

A special primary in the 11th Congressional District will be held Wednesday,  September 5 to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of U.S. Rep. Thad McCotter.

Make the best decision you can about candidates at every level despite the misleading campaign literature and the disingenuous claims.

A vote is a terrible thing to waste.

Did you vote?

Did you take the time to go to the polls and help determine the fate of the Detroit Institute of Arts? Did you join the majority of opinion regarding the Wayne County Jail millage? Did you vote for the judge who may someday make a decision that will directly affect your life?

Did you take the time to help determine which candidates’ names would actually appear on the November ballot or did you just allow someone else to make those choices for you?

Voting isn’t easy. It’s inconvenient, often time consuming and can even be challenging on occasion, but it is the price we pay to have the elected leaders we choose at every level. It’s also difficult to know who to vote for, these days, unless one is parochially involved in an issue or a strong supporter of a candidate. Interest in elections seems to be at an all- time low in many communities, and we are confident it isn’t because things are going so well.

Voter apathy is at an epidemic rate and nowhere is it more symptomatic than in primary elections like the one a few weeks ago.  Many people feel they are just too busy to vote, after all, their time is valuable, they have things to do. Others are just lazy and some simply feel too discouraged by the current state of politics in our local, county and state elections to even attempt what they feel is an exercise in futility.

Voting, after all, isn’t a one-day exercise, or it shouldn’t be. Informed voting requires paying some attention, as time permits, to the issues and the questions. Informed voting means watching the conduct of elected officials on issues, taking note of their behavior and understanding whether they are really doing the job for which voters gave them the nod previously or believing they will do as they promised while they were campaigning. Voting requires some level of involvement and interest.

When you don’t vote, no matter what the reason, you have given away one of your most basic rights. Then, as has happened, candidates who do not represent your best interests or opinions take office. When those elected officials then make decisions contrary to your wishes, your well being or even your safety, you cannot be surprised. You cannot be outraged. You, after all, by not voting, might just as well have cast your vote for them.

If you didn’t make it to the polls for the August primary, get out and vote this September 5th and make a promise to yourself to go in November. From now until then, pay attention to the candidates, to what they say and what they do. Make the best decision you can about candidates at every level despite the misleading campaign literature and the disingenuous claims.

No, voting isn’t easy. Nothing so worthwhile and precious ever is.