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The Mesa Press

The Mesa Press

The independent student news site of San Diego Mesa College.

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The Mesa Press

The Mesa Press

Change vs. Complacency

This 2008 Presidential Election should have its own slogan, “Change Versus Complacency.” Like it or not, this election will define how our country moves on from this stupid quagmire that Bush has left us in. Either we can change with Barack Hussein Obama (do people realize why we never get to see his middle name anywhere?) or we can stay put with where we’re at with John McCain (72 going on 102). This isn’t just an election about those two, it’s about how the young generation will proceed. Either we will advocate change or stay stagnant. With the race really close right now, the younger votes are the most important (Scarlett Johansson and, to a lesser extent, Paris Hilton are involved).

From rumblings between friends, co-workers and students from Mesa and SDSU, it seems like all want Obama to be the leader of our free world in January. When asked whether or not they will vote on Election Day, here are some of their replies:

“I’ll probably be stuck in school all day.” Really, they don’t have voting booths on campus or somewhere near the neighborhood?

“I’ll be at work the whole day.” What an idiot. People can take at most two hours off, with pay, to vote.

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“I fear that if Obama gets elected, he’ll certainly die before he gets sworn in.” This is the most idiotic excuse for not voting. Presidential nominees know that being the leader of the free world is something dangerous and can be life-threatening. Obama knows what he’s getting into.

There are reports, like from Mlive.com, that says the younger demographic will show up and vote. Statistics at www.cenus.gov give these syndicates some backbone to their points. The increase of registered voters went from 50.7% to 57.6% during 2000 to 2004. But as the great Homer Simpson once said, “Oh, people can come up with statistics to prove anything. 14% of people know that.”

What they fail to mention is in 2000, where 50.7% of the people registered (12,122 out of 26,712), only a whopping 36.1% (8,635) actually voted. In 2004, the 57.6% that registered (14,334 out of 27,808), only 46.7% (11,639) of them decided to turn in their ballots. Just look at those numbers and let it sink in. Yes, slight improvement, but it isn’t big enough to make the young voices be heard.

Don’t think that this is an article about another jackass preaching how young people just don’t like voting. It simply points out what kind of thinking our generation is at. We are lazier than ever. If we were to walk around the Mesa campus, and give students two questions, what is Obama’s middle name or can you do Soulja Boy’s dance, chances are more people will be able to do that stupid Superman dance then realize that Hussein is Obama’s middle name (given the fact they completely forget that his middle name was mentioned in the first paragraph of this article).

There’s hypocrisy among us young people. We want change yet we aren’t willing to put time and effort into it. With an election so close, young people will determine who will win this election. If it’s like most people are chirping about, Obama will be putting his hand on that bible in January. But if it’s like those people that make up stupid excuses not to vote, it’s going to be McCain.

That’s goes back to the original slogan, change versus complacency. On Election Day, when you are either standing in line ready to cast your ballot or sitting on your lazy butt watching the election coverage, just ask yourself one question, “Do you want change?” By the two scenarios that have been described, it seems that your choice has already been made.

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