Now that I'm a retired teacher I must admit that for the first time I miss not giving my American Government students the lecture I used to give every new class--especially since it's an election year. One of the most important things I used to drum into them every first lecture was that "voting is not your right---it's your responsibility. Voting is a requirement of this class."
I wonder how many people who are registered Illinois voters will ACTUALLY vote on Tuesday, Feb. 5th. I'm very hopeful that EVERYONE who can vote WILL vote. I used to tell my students, "If you don't vote, don't bitch." No, that's not exactly a VOTE OR DIE kind of thing, but I sure get tired of those people who just sit around and bitch about how bad they think everything is and then you find out they NEVER vote. Don't vote? SHUT UP and let the rest of us who give a damn about our country run things.
Everyone in my home did early voting due to travel and weather issues. Good thing because for example, I have been pleased to tell the Oberweis campaign folks when they've called (at least 3-4 times) that Jim got 3 votes from my home already. They usually say thank you and hang up. I've had the good fortune to tell the Kay Hatcher campaign workers the same thing.
So candidates, PLEASE NO MORE CALLS. We voted--because we know it's not our right, it's our RESPONSIBILITY. We do give a damn about our country--we've earned the right to bitch because we voted. (So please, can we go to bed early now without the phone constantly ringing????)
