Kealper's Randomness

Ok people, this is a post about politics, but it most certainly isn't the usual political post you'll see.

Note: I will not preach to anyone why X is better or worse than Y, etc. Instead, this is intended to be a long, informative, non-partisan reminder about the "what's what" for today. And no, this isn't copied/pasted from elsewhere, I actually took the time to write all this up, because I think it's worth the read.

First and foremost: If you are able, get your butt out to the polls! Don't take the stance of "Oh it doesn't matter if I vote or not", because it does matter. If enough people are in that mindset, the candidate you want might not win! If you are unable to make it to your local polling location, there is still absentee ballots. DO NOT use "work" as an excuse to vote, because you are legally allowed time out of your job to vote!

Second: If you are unsure of whether you're able to vote, check your state's website! All of them provide an easy and fast way to see if you are registered to vote, and provide you with all sorts of information like where your polling location is, and even a sample ballot for your precinct so you aren't thrown for a loop when you walk up to the booth. If you are registered to vote and you are unsure of what to bring, although a small handful of states require some form of picture identification in order to vote, the majority of states do not require any form of identification to vote, although most will require that you sign a small affidavit, or legally-binding document, stating that you did not have valid identification with you, and that you swear you are who you say you are. That information can also be viewed on your state's voter information website.

Third: Make sure you vote intelligently! Don't just pick person X because someone else said they were voting for person X and not person Y, because you might end up being the vote that determines the outcome of the election, and person X might not be who you actually wanted! There are a few different websites dedicated to allowing people to see what candidate stands for what causes, and one that comes to mind is this: ISideWith.com, which allows you to answer a few quick questions about how you feel on certain key issues in this year's elections, and then gives you the percentage of issues that each candidate shares with you. That and sites like it are a useful way to determine if the person you think you want is actually the person you want! (If you have more time, it is recommended that you click the "Show X more Y questions" to get a more accurate result; Results on that particular website I linked are as private or as public as you choose to make them)

Last but not least: If you feel you have anything that would also be helpful to know, please feel free to add it to the comments. Please DO NOT turn the comments in to a partisan bloodbath where people are at each others' necks about who is voting for who. This is intended as a public service, and intended to be shared around so that everyone may see it.