Last-Minute Canvassing

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Well, I finally consented to go canvassing with my wife.  Today, we were just going to registered Democrats who had indicated that they were supporters of Obama, to remind them to vote, and to let them know where their polling station was.  We found only a few of them at home, but those few greeted us with smiles, and told us that they were certainly going to vote, knew all about their polling places.  Some of them had already voted, and wished us a good day.

What do you think of that?  My wife had already had a day of doing the same, and was too tired to keep going for the afternoon as well, and so we came home to a delighted dog who declared she had missed us, and was glad to have us back.  She then proceeded to race up and down the backyard, barking at squirrels, both real and imaginary.

Talking about imaginary squirrels, one of the Democrats on whose door we knocked, having assured us that he was certainly going to vote, proceeded to share with us that the other candidate for President, Romney, belonged to a sect that allowed polygamy, and believed all sorts of things that weren't true.  My wife and I looked at each other with alarm; we were not fully prepared for a theological discussion, of all things.  After all, neither of us believe in the fanciful dogmas of Christians, either.  But I wasn't going so far as to accuse Romney of being a polygamist.  It is just such unfortunate myth-mongering that sets all of us back.  It was far more to the point that Romney was all about curtailing social service programs, cutting back on spending for the Arts, on education, on so many of the things my wife and I personally find positive and conducive to a better life: State Parks, limits on pollution by power companies, Head Start, and so on.  Romney's polygamy has no really important implications for national policy.

The previous day, my wife had been accosted by a man who was persuaded that in four more years, if Obama were to remain in power, all the women would be wearing veils, and this would be a Muslim country.

It saddens me that the less educated elements of Pennsylvania society, on both sides of this election, are so ignorant.  In some ways, perhaps ignorance has become more entrenched over the last half century or so.  Television has come up with new and creative ways of enhancing ignorance; I cannot explain the phenomenon otherwise.  The lies one encounters in advertising claims on new products are another source of ignorance.  That's called Marketing.  There's lies, there's damned lies, and there's Marketing.

Nevertheless, it is good to see smiles when we go canvassing.  It was a good decision, as far as I am concerned, to restrict our visits to the homes of those who have informed the campaign that they were Obama supporters, just to remind them.  There are documented instances of people who have forgotten to vote on election day.  There are lots of things wrong with the world in which we live, but being able to vote is one of the not-so-wrong things.

After the election of 1968, the highest voter turnout was in 2008 relative to the population eligible to vote.  A lot of people wanted to keep John McCain and Sara Palin out of the White House, and Barack Obama in.  It will be interesting to see the voter percentage this election, whichever outcome.  If the voter turnout is higher, and the Democrats win, it will be a terrific endorsement.  If it is lower, and the Democrats win, what does it mean?  That the Democrats were somewhat complacent, and the Republicans were too divided to agree on their man.  Similar inferences could be made if the Republicans win, depending on whether the voter turnout is higher than in 2008 or lower.

At any rate, if I do not post anything between now and Election Day, here's wishing you a good election, and hoping that you vote!
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