Jillian excited after voting for the first time in the 2008 Presidential Election.

Americans have the privilege and responsibility to select the candidate who is best suited to help America recover during one of its lowest economic points. Voter turnout was expected to surpass records in several states

Freshman Jillian Leonard gave her thoughts on election day. “Voting for the first time was very exciting for me because it’s a right not every country has,” Leonard said. Her process of voting began in the Kehr Union where she waited for over an hour and a half to cast her first ballot. The university offered food and beverages while the students waited patiently in line.

Mostly students throughout campus have volunteered there time to make sure students have voted or are planning on going to the polls. Since the beginning of the election, people walking around or sitting at tables have been encouraging students to register and go to the polls.

All the hard work and preparation will have paid off when the announcement of our new president is announced soon. This will be a change in history and all the voters who participated should be proud of themselves for being a part of this change.

With a fully rural population of about 1,500, Mount Pleasant Township citizens bring their small-town values to the table on this Election Day as well.

According to data found on www.city-data.com, “88% of Mount Pleasant residents drive a car to work, and over 50% of residents use fuel to heat their homes.”

A number one issue to the people of Mount Pleasant are fuel prices. However, someone who rides mass transit or walks to work in Philadelphia may be focused more on the effect of greenhouse gases on our environment. This same principle could theoretically be applied to students living on Bloomsburg’s campus without a vehicle.

Unfortunately, small areas such as Mount Pleasant cannot compete with the amount of voting potential as Philadelphia or Pittsburgh, and sometimes their voices cannot be clearly heard as well as they would like them to be.

Mount Pleasant Township Community Center

It would be great if presidents could campaign in small towns, but these factors disable the idea…

· Time Commitment – Why speak to a crowd of 200 voters when you could speak to a crowd of 200,000?

· Resources Management – As a politician, are you  going to start campaigning for the 2012 election now? One would have to if they planned on hitting every single small town in the U.S.

Besides, if the president you’re hoping for is within 50 miles from your home, you would consider making the small commute, wouldn’t you?

Despite these common campaign problems, one thing will never change which is, that every vote counts. Incredible numbers of new voters have been registered for this election, and many new political strategies have been implemented. These new call-to-actions may have numerous new influences on how the public thinks about both politics and technology as well.

The internet is such a powerful campaigning tool, maybe the presidential candidates have cloned themselves via Wi-Fi rather well, maybe just not by 100 times just yet.

Both candidates have detailed plans and proposals for helping fix the economic crisis we find ourselves in today.  For example, Obama is fighting for lower taxes for working families, tax relief for small businesses and start-ups, and is fighting for fair trade.

McCain on the other hand is working towards a proposed student loan continuity plan to keep the credit crisis from hurting college students. And he wants to keep Bush’s corporate taxes, and says he’ll keep overall tax rates low, especially for entrepreneurs.

This election is a historic one.  Many people on campus are first time voters and have strong opinions about the credit crisis.

Megan Kusko, a senior said she was supporting Barack Obama because “he would be better for the economy.”  When asked why she was supporting him, Kusko said “Obama is representing change and new ideas.  What we don’t need is a Republican who could follow the Bush agenda.”

Megan continued, saying “In order for us to get out of this situation, we need to stop being afraid to put their money into the market again.  The media is scaring people and stopping them from feeding the economy.”

On the other hand McCain supporters are voting based on experience.  Jackie Parrish, a junior, believes senator McCain could better run the economy because he has had experience with the issue.  Parrish believes that, “We need some government regulation in the market but not as much as Barack Obama will put into place.”

With the economy at its lowest point in years, hopefully the next president will help with an upswing.  But ultimately, it is up to the voters. 

Kal Penn signs students up to volunteer for the Obama campaign in the hospital parking lot before the parade started.

Kal Penn asks students on porches by Carver to participate in the campaign

Kal Penn takes pictures on his phone of the student activity by the Bloomsburg Police Department

Main Street erupted with cheers as Kal Penn, a well known actor and supporter of Barack Obama, marched in the Homecoming Parade with University Democrats to rally support for his candidate.

Kal Penn is an actor in the “Harold and Kumar” movies, “National Lampoon’s Van Wilder” and the popular television show “House.” He is also an Obama supporter and activist, sharing his enthusiasm with Bloomsburg University students this Homecoming.

Penn offered pictures or autographs to those who would volunteer for the Obama/Biden campaign during these last few days before the election. In the hospital parking lot before the parade began, students grouped around Penn for pictures and to volunteer. He expressed the importance of their help. “I hope you’re not all listening to CNN. It’s a lot closer than they say it is.”

While the parade started, Penn shared a more personal reason for supporting Barack Obama: the well-being of his friends. “All of my friends graduated with huge amounts of debt or they didn’t go at all.” At 31 years old, he still sees this problem. He believes that we need to start encouraging education and eliminating some of the obstacles of getting it. Penn believes that the $4,000 tax credit to help students attend college could make a big difference and is a policy change that we need.

Penn decided to travel to Bloomsburg University’s homecoming because of the university’s location. Bloomsburg is located in a swing county within a swing state. “Lots of students were never registered here,” he said. This year, around 3,000 registrations were filled out, and more people are involved. He wants to make sure that people are fairly registered and able to vote in this election, which is important to the Obama Campaign and himself.

As the parade began, Penn approached those on the sidewalks to ask for their support. He had so much interaction with students that he couldn’t keep up with the University Democrats place in the parade. Those on the ground signed quickly to volunteer and received a picture or autograph from Penn or invited him to parties later on, while those on roof-tops screamed “Kumar, Kumar!” Penn enjoyed the enthusiasm and activity though was less enthused by the “Kumar” calls. “That’s not my name, so I’m a little unresponsive,” he said with a slight smile.

As he walked onto Main Street, the celebrity was greeted by massive amounts of cheers and support. Since his main target was college students, the parade ended here for Penn as he stayed back to engage with the young crowd on this street and educate them on voting and asking for their support and time.

After the parade many followed Penn into the Democratic Office on Main Street in Bloomsburg where Penn encouraged students to help members of the community to get out and vote. “People are giving up their time and money to get to these polls.”

Though Penn is a New Jersey native and fairly familiar with this area of the country, he still finds Bloomsburg to be unique and inspiring. “The area is beautiful!” After meeting many students and local residents even before the parade began, he described the inspiration he saw in the community. “I see lots of hope in the people around here. There is lots of volunteering and mobilizing.” Penn enjoyed his visit and has lots of hope for his candidate in this area.

Disclaimer: This article is not meant to deter you from voting if you care about politics or even if you just want to vote.  I am proud to be part of a country that allows us and encourages us to vote for our leaders.  I am proud of the people who work hard on the campaigns and of the people who work hard for their parties. I am not one of those people.  It is ok if you aren’t either.

Many Americans are looking forward to Election Day.  I feel like many are also dreading it.  I simply can’t wait for people to stop badgering me about voting for Obama or McCain.  I suppose that I should come right out and say this.  I am not voting.  I feel that the entire business of politics has become so diluted with parties and party alliances that the real issues have been lost.   It isn’t that I don’t care about who will run our country; it’s just that I am nowhere near qualified to decide that.  I don’t know, and surely, I am not the only American in this situation.  I am exercising my rights, especially the one not to vote.

When I told people in  the past that I won’t be voting, I got many responses.  The most common was, “It doesn’t matter who you vote for, just vote!” This has never made any sense to me.  If it doesn’t matter who you vote for, then why bother voting? I never thought that one should vote merely for the sake of voting. Instead, I always thought that voting should be reserved for the people who do care and who do have a strong feeling about their candidate.

Another reason why many vote is simply party alliances.  One Democrat was talking to me about voting, and he said to vote for Obama, because the Republicans believe in torture.  He had this idea because while a Republican was in office, prisoners were tortured, and while according to him the administration during that time did nothing to stop it, he never gave any evidence that supports his idea that all Republicans believe in the same thing.  In fact, many people will say that the reason they will vote for McCain or Obama is because of their party, not necessarily because of their views on issues.

One of the biggest reasons not to vote is out of respect for the people who are voting.  Allow me to clarify. If one person is extremely passionate about politics and worked hard to become well-informed, and another person who doesn’t care just voted for the sake of voting, and they voted for opposite candidates, the person who doesn’t care cancelled the vote of the person who does, in effect.  Since I respect the people who are informed, I am not going to insult them by cancelling one of their votes simply for the sake of voting.  

I am not qualified to decide who leads the country, and the beauty of America is that you don’t have to be qualified to vote.  You just have to be registered.  In all honesty, I don’t care who wins the election, but not because I don’t care who leads us.  I feel like both candidates are equally qualified, perhaps in different areas, and that there would not be a major difference regardless of who wins.  There is no candidate that I am passionate about, and therefore feel it isn’t right for me to vote for one.  Although I do feel that the war, abortion rights, revising No Child Left Behind and working out the state of the economy are all important, I don’t think that either candidate for the presidency will be drastically different from the other, and I have full confidence in both of them.

If you do not care about politics, or you simply do not want to vote, then you do not have to.  It is acceptable.  There are some stipulations.  One of the biggest stipulations is that if you do not vote, then you cannot complain about the winner of the election, or any decisions they make.  Exercising the right not to vote is also exercising the right to take whatever you get.  It is risky.   Another problem is that you will get a lot of flak from people who want everyone to vote, and these people are trying to protect the right that you have to have your voice heard.  For me, not voting is a personal choice.  I think that the country’s leaders have all done a better job than I could, and that all of the candidates are qualified.   I made a conscious decision to stay out of politics because it has become a twisted business.  Instead of protecting the people’s best interests, politics has become a system of party alliances, lobbyists, shady dealings and broken promises.  Once all of that has changed, then I will be involved, but until then, I cannot be entirely passionate about anyone involved in that business, and if you’re not entirely passionate about everything your candidate stands for, then why should you vote them into office?  I respect the men and women who are informed and are passionate, and I think we all owe them a great deal of thanks.  For the rest of us who simply do not care, we also need to remember our rights and our duty to make informed decisions.  Please make the right decision.

Talia Zangari is the Assistant Editor of the Opinion section of The Voice and is an English and Secondary Education Major.

Obama, like McCain, is not perfect and has been involved with imperfect people. If Sell wishes to make a case against voting for Obama, or for voting for McCain, he should focus on the issues. Not once in the article did Sell mention a particular stance of either candidate. Perhaps this is because the candidate Sell is supporting represents the interests of the few; the rich and powerful. Obama seems to have secured the vote of most college students and his proposed policies will invest in our future—which is the future of America.

2) Can we please stop with the argument that “It is important for our generation to vote because a new president can really affect the lives of college students.” Unless we are all on the Van Wilder track, I honestly do not think McCain or Obama will have too must of an effect on our student loans and tuitions.
Voting for a president based on what they can do for college students would be like buying a coat and then moving to Florida. Let the high school class of 2009 worry about FASFA’s. Give me a president who will serve an unemployed 24-year-old whose skill set includes Madden ‘09 and sarcasm.
Furthermore, “our generation” comprises people who still think it is a good idea to have parties on Light Street on a Wednesday night. Maybe we do not really know what is in our best interest yet afterall.

3) This is a two-parter. First, to the cast and crew of Saturday Night Live: Welcome back to relevance. We’ve missed you. I’ve missed you. Heck, I’ve been a mess without you. But if you think I am going to blindly hop back on the bandwagon, you are mistaken. I need some kind of long-term commitment. I swear, if I tune into an episode in late November and you are not funny again, I’m never coming back. Don’t tease me, Lorne Michaels.
Second, to the public: Stop discussing these skits in a political way now. I don’t know how Palin’s appearance on SNL affected the polls. I don’t care to know how they affected the polls. I watched the show to laugh, not to engage in deep conversation the next day at the water cooler. The only acceptable small talk that should come from these appearances should be along the lines of “Was Palin funny last night?” or “What could they have done that would have been funnier?” That is it. No compromise. (And yes, the show was funny but they missed a golden opportunity. Palin should have pretended to be Tina Fey during Weekend Update.)

4) I have no problem with students setting up shop around campus and hassling passersby about the upcoming election. While it can sometimes be annoying, it is good to see some people on this campus passionate about something for once. If their attitude and determination rubbed off on a few more students around campus, Bloomsburg would defiantly be a more interesting place to live.

Still, I hate to nitpick but we have to do something regarding our “double-jeopardy” problem. This refers to being confronted multiple times in the same day by the same person about the same subject. Listen, I gave you a few minutes of my time before lunch, but there is only so many minutes I can devote to nagging conversation. I do not expect you to remember every single person you talk to each day, but we need a system. That is why I suggest a password. After we talk voting with you for a few minutes, you give us a password that will prove that we already conversed with you. Therefore, when you try to stop us again three hours later, we can smile, say “tsetse fly,” and walk on by with no guilt.

So there you have it. I think this is more then a fair compromise. I admit this is a histori… eh, I mean I admit we should all pay attention to this election, and everyone else follows these rules to make sure no one gets hurt this fall. Vote early, vote often, and then let us never talk about it again.