Hi, my name is Carly. If bạn don't know me, I'm a very political person. I just wanted to do my little bit on fanpop and đăng lên my own PSA on why bạn need to vote in the upcoming election.

If bạn turn eighteen years old on November 4th, 2008, then bạn better be celebrating your birthday in your assigned polling place, hoặc at least have sent in your absentee ballot bởi then. bởi now, everyone should have registered to vote. Most states no longer allow any further alterations to their registration information for this election. I'm sorry, maybe I should have written this soapbox a tháng ago, but there's no use crying over spilled milk. If bạn are unsure what your voter information is, hoặc worried it didn't get changed when bạn told them to change it (like I was), look up your county's election site and tìm kiếm your name and birth ngày and they should tell you. Most counties have this service available to their citizens.

For example, I live in Seattle, a part of King County, which is a part of Washington State. As a result, I went to the link website and searched my name to double-check that everything was in order.



Let's say we have a pretend friend named Your Name Here who decided to check to see that her registration information was in order. Exhaling a large sigh of relief, she noticed that they did change her address to "555 Somewhere Street" just as she had requested when she called them up two weeks ago. That means that Your Name Here will receive her absentee ballot, as she also makes note that she is registered as a permanent absentee voter. She is also delighted to see a full danh sách of candidates and elections that she will be voting in come November.



Now, you'll notice from the screen capture above that Your Name Here has a whole danh sách of other candidates beyond just "Barack Obama" and "John McCain." There are eight, count 'em, eight different parties running for president. Even if you're not going to vote for them, that's good to know, isn't it? As bạn can see from the purple in the capture, Your Name Here already clicked on the Green Party Nominees Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente (probably because Your Name Here is a closeted feminist). Beyond the national presidential nominees, Your Name Here also has a danh sách of people running for her US representative to congress for her district (McDermott hoặc Beren? Choices, choices...), governor in her state (Gregoire hoặc Rossi? They're both pretty bad...), as well as Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, etc. On hàng đầu, đầu trang of that, all of these names are linked to the link which gives the voter details on the people they are voting for, as well as the acts and measures they will be voting on.

So bạn see, your local elections website is filled with a wealth of information to help bạn decide who bạn think is best for governmental jobs, both locally and nationally. Use these websites! I can not stress that enough. A good vote is a well-informed vote. What's the point of voting if bạn don't know what you're voting for? Voting is nothing to take lightly, and neither is not voting. Too many jaded people ask themselves "What's the point?" and decide they don't want to vote. But bạn give up your vote, bạn give up your voice. And America is a nation of highly opinionated people. We know what we want... We just aren't always sure if the politicians support what we want, hoặc what's right for us. Which is why websites like your local elections site offer a bevy of information available at your fingertips. It is the epitome of lazy information gathering, people. bạn don't have to remember to tune in to watch the debates. bạn don't have to tivo anything. bạn don't have to try and decipher the facts through all the personal blows and the mudslinging. It's all right there for bạn in black and white what a candidate supports and what s/he doesn't support. bạn don't even have to get dressed. Just roll out of bed, turn on your computer, and click on a name that sounds to bạn like it has potential and find out of it actually does hoặc not.

I would like to take this moment to address the tiêu đề of this article. This is sort of a sad note, as I know a family who was eaten bởi a hungry voter troll, so this is a sincere warning thêm than a scare tactic. Poor little Jimmy Wilson decided that he didn't want to vote one năm because it was just too much effort to fill in a little bubble and send the ballot in the mail (yup, he was an absentee voter). Jimmy Wilson convinced his wife not to vote either, although she even had a candidate she supported and everything. They all thought there was no point. Their poor children were all under eighteen, and really wished that they could have voted, but alas they would have to wait for the tiếp theo election. And then, on November 5th, the big Fremont Troll left its place under Fremont Bridge and came to Jimmy Wilson's house where it ate him, his wife, and even his poor, innocent, wannabe voter kids, all because Jimmy was lazy.

True story.

So go on these websites people. Look up your candidates. Learn what they stand for. And for goodness sake, go out there and vote!