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DEMOCRACY.

I’m not telling you who to vote for, or whom I’m voting for. I’m just urging you to exercise your right to vote. Our system isn’t perfect, but it’s so much better than many other countries that have despots ruling with an iron fist until they die, or those that change leadership through continuous and bloody military coups.

Voting in this election isn’t easy for the majority of Americans. Torn between two Presidential candidates that have their share of problems, I’ve met many people over the past 6 months that tell me they won’t cast a vote for either one. They tell me they aren’t going to waste their time because one is politically corrupt and the other, morally corrupt.

Early on, I was of the same opinion. That being, “Why bother?” Both the DNC and GOP offered up a choice that left us thinking, These two are the best our two major political parties have to offer?

The thought of not voting didn’t last long. If I don’t vote I won’t have a reason to bitch about the results during the next four years and if I don’t vote, I shouldn’t bitch about it. That’s always been a sore point with me for the past 38 years, when I first began voting. I used to listen to people complain about a President only to discover they didn’t vote because they weren’t registered. They left it up to others to decide and then complained about it.

As a young man in the U.S. Navy, my first vote was done by Absentee Ballot. The military has (it did, back then and I’m guessing it hasn’t changed) a concerted effort to get its personnel registered and voting. As my division commander told us, “Men who came before you gave their lives and limbs so that you young f*****s could vote. I don’t give a s**t which party you register to, or who you vote for, but God help you if you don’t fill out this form and return it to me.”

We all returned our registration forms. None of us wanted to be put on some “Special Detail,” for who knew how long.

Today is the day to vote. Hold your nose if you must, but make a decision.