With civil unrest due to police violence, Covid-19, wildfires, and so much political turmoil it's no wonder that November 3, 2020 is a huge day for not only sits in the White House but for all those who put him in that seat; and that's why we become educated voters no matter what side you're on.
Now by now everyone knows my side but let me be clear. This piece is only written as a bipartisan article to give everyone the facts before stepping into the voting booth. I'm just giving you my suggestions for what you need to arm you with what you need to make your decision. You don't even have to take my word for it.
First, know your sources. You're going to be hit from both sides and in between about their candidate and they will lay out not only who they are but whom they think or know who their candidate is. Your main broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox) are supposed to be your first line of defense in addition to your cable networks (CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, etc.) all are supposed to give you accurate information. While everyone works hard to give you as much accurate news as possible, they do have to go with the sources they're given and unlike print journalists, they're 24-hour news cycle is based up getting us information quickly.
Their critics would have you believe that journalists put out anything at anytime just for the sake of putting out information giving the media a bad name. This happens but a lot of times that happens in the case of entertainment journalists and those journalists who are more interested in the drama of celebrities than in actual news. One example are the conflicting Covid-19 numbers. Everyone gives out the numbers that are given to them. Then we too have to understand one set of numbers may not be the overall numbers which is why I ask us to check our sources.
Watch out for "partisan" site who tend to make their side look good by constantly putting down the other side with falsehoods or conspiracy. Personally, I'm a liberal but I run a bipartisan online newspaper. In other words, if I'm going to say something negative about either Biden or Trump, it will be in truth and not lies. I will report the good and the bad on both sides.
This is the hard part. How do you distinguish fact from fiction. First make sure your publication isn't far-left or far-right. I'm not saying whether these publications are good or bad but they are highly biased by whatever party they're affiliated with. It's best to stick with the networks and publication I mentioned.
Next, stick with friends who will make sure to get you the truth no matter what. I try to share the most breaking news I can over social media. There are other friends who can give you the best news on their side and it's accurate. Just be careful of those who give you their slant.
Second, no party is perfect. You're not going to like something about your party whether you're Democrat, Republican or Independent. You're going to have to choose a side. A lot of you don't even agree with everything your parents, your friends, your kids or anyone else. It's the same thing with your party. Whether it's abortion, greed, war or whatever it is, you will have to pick a side.
Next, we need to keep Kanye West out of the conversation. He's a distraction and it was admitted that he's a distraction. He doesn't qualify no matter how many write in votes he gets. Let's say for the sake of argument, he does win. He still has to go through the paperwork process which means a physical and mental exam. There's a lot in his past mentally that would disqualify him. Also with so much going on in this country racially, it's a long shot. Kanye is saying a lot of thing people want to hear which is what prompting people to look at him.
Next, we need to keep Kanye West out of the conversation. He's a distraction and it was admitted that he's a distraction. He doesn't qualify no matter how many write in votes he gets. Let's say for the sake of argument, he does win. He still has to go through the paperwork process which means a physical and mental exam. There's a lot in his past mentally that would disqualify him. Also with so much going on in this country racially, it's a long shot. Kanye is saying a lot of thing people want to hear which is what prompting people to look at him.
Third, you must start at the local level. Do you know who your local alderpersons, state and local representatives are? They're the ones whom you need to help you on the local level. While we wait on a president to save us, we need to speak to our local politicians about our issues like crime, financial issues, schools and more. Your alderpersons and local representatives take your issues to the state representatives. Then, by being educated on whom they are, you can go to the polls and put the right people in the right place locally before you even decide who's the president and vice president.
We also need to be educated on our school board president, local and state judges, prosecutors, mayors, comptrollers treasurers and more. These are the people some of us don't care about that we should. We need to form relationships with our elected officials but those relationships work both ways. They are like personal relationships. We can't just yell at them when things don't go our way or we can't just talk to them when we need something. Remember, many of the alderpersons and representatives live in our neighborhoods with their families. However if you do have some who aren't very friendly, that may be a problem and may not be the best choice.
Fourth, what do you care about most during an election cycle? Let's explore that. Biggest issues are abortion, racism, the economy, immigration, foreign policy equal rights for all. These are all hot button issues but what do you care about the most. Now just know that a lot of these issues only become issues during election years like abortion and immigration. If you are die hard are set for or against abortion, immigration or gay rights, that's one thing but it shouldn't be the only thing because these are issues that may not even get looked at until the president actually gets in. That's where the real work begins for all of us.
The next thing is what I like to call "realistic timing". If the economy is bad and your concern is how you're going to feed yourself and your family, many people could care less about immigration, foreign policy or abortion. I suggest before attacking your social issues, find a president that will first help to restore the economy so you can work and take care of your family. Then you can fight for the environment, abortion and more. The other realistic things would be crime, racism in our cities, police reform, education and more. I'm not saying let's save the world before worrying about other issues because that's unrealistic too. I'm saying, let's restore ourselves to where we're at least working and taking care of our families before we do anything else.
Finally, trust your own instincts. Don't let anyone else influence you or your vote. That's why you're not supposed to talk politics in line at the polls. That's why politicians aren't allowed to campaign in front of polling stations on election day. Know your rights as well. There are no wrong answers if you go with your true feelings. Don't worry about losing friends or not because your true friends wouldn't leave you despite how you feel. Remember I said earlier that you don't even agree with 100 percent of anything your friends, family or your kids or even your boss do.