I just got back from a volunteer training meeting run by the local WA for Obama office. There were a ridiculous number of people there- the room could have held 40 comfortably, and there were at least 100 people packed in there, spilling out the door onto the sidewalk. It was crazy, but in a good way. I volunteered to phone bank and/or canvas for a few hours every Wednesday evening from now until the election, and I'm thinking I may volunteer on election day also. Although, I guess Washington is changing from polls to mail-in ballots, so everyone has the option to do either and the guy at the training said estimates are that 75% of people will vote by mail. So maybe election day doesn't matter that much.
One thing that I'm hoping to get involved with is get out the vote efforts at college campuses, my own campus in particular. College students are more liberal and aware of current events than most people, but have trouble getting to the polls when they need to, so I would be excited to help with that. Especially since I get the impression that GOTV events on campus might involve sitting behind a table, not walking around neighborhoods, so anything that means less pain for me would be nice.
I'm also considering writing a letter or email or something that I could send out to people to let them know some of the issues that I think are really in Obama's favor, like his suggestion to sponsor a federal study to investigate the problems people with disabilities have finishing school and finding jobs and possible solutions, his proposals to support new combat vets coming home with brain injuries and PTSD, and his suggestion to start a federal program like the Peace Corp that employs young people in jobs that improve their community in exchange for college scholarships. Maybe it would be a bit snobby, but so many people I know just don't know the details of the issues that this election will decide. A lot of this stuff is very detailed and most people don't have the time to find out what their candidates really propose... but maybe I would come off as an elitist know-it-all. I dunno.
About Me
- Tayi
- I am a young, female, disabled veteran of the US Army. I have fibromyalgia with fatigue and associated cognitive dysfunctions, which means my thought processes and writing are slower and less coherent than is necessary for a proper news-reactive blog. Therefore, you get my maunderings about whatever the hell I'm thinking about, current or not.
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2 comments:
How could you, of all people, come off as elitist when talking about the needs of veterans? I think people will be interested to hear your viewpoint, and will give it more consideration than they would a second-hand report about veterans and disability.
Well, in my experience people don't like to be exposed to politics in any way. And when most people encounter an amount of information with which they were previously unfamiliar, they become wary and guarded and careful not to believe anything that doesn't reinforce prior beliefs. Maybe this is just the people I know, or maybe I'm just a wee bit cynical. But I am afraid that I do come off as bossy and snobby and too eager to be right.
I dunno.
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