Decision 2012

If  you’ve been reading my blog since circa 2008 (or before, wowza!), you might remember the last presidential election, and my semi-regular and passionate rants and raves on the subject. I was dedicated. I paid close attention to the primaries. I read political coverage. I debated with friends and family in the months leading up to the election. I backed Barack Obama, and when Election Day finally came, Obama won. Which felt—well—amazing, because my guys had lost in both 2000 and 2004 (years during which I had been almost as passionate about things as I was in 2008).

So, I don’t know… maybe some of you are wondering where I stand now. Maybe some of you are wondering where my rants and raves have been this time around. Maybe some of you are glad they’ve been missing. And of course, a lot of you may not have been around for four whole years, so you wonder nothing.

Here’s the thing: I don’t have much to say.

I admittedly haven’t been paying too much attention. I barely knew the names of the Republicans in this year’s primaries. The only reason I know anything about Romney is because I learned about him in 2008. I’ve taken a few of those online quizzes—the ones where you answer questions about issues and rate them based on your priorities, and it tells you which politician(s) you align most closely with—and I’m not surprised to find that I’m still firmly in Camp Obama.

But this process? The campaigning, the debating? I can’t take it anymore. The fiery discussions with friends and family aren’t happening, because I do not feel well-informed enough to defend my position. I don’t like feeling this way—I like to know what I’m talking about—but I just do.not.have.the.energy.

Sure, my priorities have changed dramatically since 2008. I have a child. I have a different, more demanding job. I have a house with seemingly endless projects. But more than anything, the past four years have shown me that it really doesn’t make a damn bit of difference who is in the Oval Office. Change? We can want it, we can believe in it, but it’s not going to happen.

People bitch about President Obama and how there has been a tremendous lack of progress throughout the past four years. And hey, dislike him if you wish, but from where I’ve been sitting, it has looked like Obama’s hands have been firmly tied. What do you expect him to accomplish if the Republicans disagree with him JUST TO DISAGREE WITH HIM? I know that this goes both ways, but it’s infuriating.

At the end of the day, we can’t get two groups of people to agree. Each group has their reasons for believing what they believe, I guess, and whether those reasons are for the good of this country, I can’t say. Until politics change—until we can somehow rid ourselves of this completely f-ed up system—nothing is going to change for the better. I can’t see how we are ever going to move forward.

When I read and hear about politics this year, the only thing I really feel is deflated.

With all of that said, I can still appreciate some political comedy. Because these pieces of commentary by Jon Stewart, in response to last week’s debate? Hilarious. I may be voting for Obama, but it doesn’t mean I can’t laugh at his expense. (And yes, we did have the debate on. Although I will admit I was only half-listening because OH.MY.GOD. it was so dull and boring.)