Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Voting for our kids

I’m generally not wishy-washy when it comes to politics, but as I headed into the polling booth this Super Tuesday I was still feeling deeply conflicted. I took a deep breath, voted for a candidate and was half-filled with regret about my decision. This year I’d like to support two of them.

I’ve made a decision not to be blatantly political on this blog, but I will say that being a mother makes me more passionate about politics than ever before. I want to think about how to leave a better world for my boys since their future is at stake even though they have no say in the matter now.

How do I help support a world for them that is peaceful, that is headed on a path toward environmentally sustainability, a world where people are committed to caring for one another and to putting their children and their grandchildren before themselves? How do I find someone I trust to repair our standing in the world and to fix our bungled budget so that we’re no longer hundreds of billions of dollars in the red and relying on future generations to pay the taxes that we’re not willing to pay now?

There I was, with Owen in the front pack, trying to vote for my baby who can’t yet talk. After debating the issue internally, and with friends and family for weeks now, I was still feeling hazy about it all.

I won’t say where I came down, and I can’t even be certain if I made the best choice (although I know I’ll feel quite certain come the general election in November). But as a mother, I’m glad that I voted. And I hope you will to.

Feel free to share your own convictions here about the candidate who best represents your children’s future. I’m going to try to stay quiet but I’d love to hear your voices.

1 comment:

shannon said...

I thought you'd never ask! Hillary has been an advocate for women and children through her pro bono lawyering and legislating for decades. From her It Takes a Village book, which promotes a loving family and community for children, she gave over 1 million dollars to children's charities. She has endlessly worked for abused children and mothers, as well. She has fought for higher standards in schools, not lower ones like no child left behind, and made the Arkansas school sysytems much stronger through a task force she created. Recently, in the senate, she helped pass legislation to make schools more environmentally safe and has recently helped make medicines safer for children through laws. When I read her story, I realized that her goal has always been to strengthen our society through our children. Check it out on hillaryclinton.com and help other people take another look at her; most people just see her as Bill Clinton's wife or a woman whom everyone loves to hate. But why, really?