Mad Geek

Well, it came and went. There were no real surprises, and (so far) no big controversies. A major difference I noticed in this election from others was how many people came up and bluntly asked if I had voted yet. More often than not, when they heard that I didn't vote, I heard "Well if you don't care enough to vote, then you shouldn't have the right to complain."

Let's recap some basic voting rights here:
It is no one else's business whether or not you vote
It is no one else's business who you vote for/against
It is a fundamental American right to complain even when there's nothing to complain about

I really have gotten sick of that saying about not being able to complain. Here's a thought, DON'T COMPLAIN ANYWAY! There are far worse things in the world than the guy you don't like taking office. Chances are good that you'd only be complaining if your vote lost anyway, so what good is your complaining going to do?

There are a few people I could understand complaining; my father among them. My dad is not an American citizen, he is a resident alien. He's been living here, legally, for almost 26 years now. He runs a (mostly) successful private business, pays taxes, obeys the law, and is subject to the same ordinances as everyone else. He cannot be drafted, but he can enlist. And he can't vote. Despite this, he rarely ever complains about it. If he doesn't, the rest of you can shut your yap.

Don't get me wrong, it's good to have opinions. And it's good to be informed on current events. And its VERY good to stand up for what you believe in and speak your peace. Notice that no where in there is the word "complain" or "whine". And that's really what we're talking about here.