Wet Dirt or Why I'm Voting

Why I'm Voting.

There was this guy watching a video of the second presidential debate and whenever Obama would say anything, the guy would produce a loud scoff-ish snort (or perhaps a snort-ish scoff) and say, "What a moron! What an incompetent idiot! That's such crap!"

And I wanted to say to him, "Hey! Hey buddy. Are you saying you're smarter than the president? If so, that's really impressive. Good for you. That's amazing. I mean, Obama graduated from Harvard (let's do a quick check: you're not there) and then lectured for twelve years at the University of Chicago Law School (twelve years ago you were probably just becoming too cool for Power Rangers and making the transition to Pokemon). For you to have surpassed Obama's knowledge of politics and government in such a short period of time is staggering! I am staggered!"

 I'm not saying you have to agree with the President. But don't sit behind a laptop in a dingy college apartment with your stretched-out button up shirt and your husky-boy khaki shorts and call either candidate stupid.

Arrogance, your arrogance, your maniacal self-righteousness is the reason we don't have a direct democracy. You can't be trusted with that much power because you think you know things. And the founders of our nation, the crafters of the Constitution knew perfectly well that YOU KNOW NOTHING! And until you realize that you know nothing you will never stuff another piece of sense into your soft, doughy head.

It's funny that it is somehow acceptable in the context of watching a debate too. I would like to see that guy tell someone at a party, "Oh yeah, the president? He's an idiot compared to me. I'm way smarter than the president."

It's psychotic. Yet watching, spectating, makes us feel like we have power. Like we have control. When, in fact, the very act of spectating proves we are not capable of participating. It should be extremely humbling and demeaning!

And that's why I'm going to participate in this election. To humble myself. To give my meager support to the candidate I believe will best represent the interests I refuse to ever acknowledge or even wonder about myself.

But at least I will participate and be humbled rather than sit back with nauseating, pungent, rotting smugness and spout off in a dark little hole about how I could've done it better.

I may have already posted this but a professor I had last year said, in reference to an undergraduate education, "You are here to be humiliated."

I will try to remember that always, I am here to be humiliated.