Tomorrow is officially Election Day though many across the country have participated in early voting. Leading up to this election, we have all had a lot of thoughts. Some have been good; some have been bad; some have been conflicting. No matter your hope for the future, I think there are a couple of things that need to be reflected on by many.
First and foremost, what do you truly know about how the government works? I can’t speak for everyone, but based on the things appearing on my social media, A LOT of people don’t remember what they were taught in High School Civics about the structure and powers of the government or how much certain groups fought for rights like the one to vote. (Side note, I never had a High School Civics class which I think is one of many issues with our education system.) It is painfully obvious that A LOT of people have forgotten that there are three branches of government, and each branch is designed to provide a system of checks and balances to another branch. Along with this, it is painfully obvious that many people do not understand basic economic concepts like the impact supply and demand have on pricing. They also do not understand what little impact elected positions have on pricing. I told a group of teens long ago that if you want higher base wages then you have to expect price increases because top positions in corporations aren’t going to take pay cuts to increase base level employee pay. (I could have a whole separate conversation about this.) I say all this with the thought that no matter the outcome of the elections tomorrow, the best thing people can do is educate themselves on how government works and the part that each citizen plays.
Secondly, I have to say that I am impressed with how many families I saw at early voting. As a child, I loved going with my parents to the polls and learning about the entire election process! When I turned 18, I remember being super excited to register to vote and actually being sad that I couldn’t vote for president for another three years. I attribute this excitement to going with my parents for voting, so when I became a parent, it was important to me that our child see us voting. Now he’s excited to vote one day even though it is many years off for him! He also sees the importance of everyone being able to vote. As we were reading a book about Ancient Greece, he thought it was completely unfair that women and slaves didn’t get to vote. He was sure everyone needed their voices to be heard! I hope he always keeps this excitement for voting and equality!
See you after Election Day!
XOXO,
The Great Kaysby
The Great Kaysby 