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Posts Tagged ‘#Election2019’

We Matter

Posted in Other, tagged , , , , , , , on November 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »

It’s finally election week! That’s right, tomorrow is Election Day in the US, and if you haven’t already voted, it’s time to make your voice heard. 

To find your voting and drop-off locations: 

I Will Vote

For my fellow Pennsylvania voters, here’s how to find your polling place, what to expect if you are a first-time voter, and more info.

(I’ve already voted absentee because I’m out of the country, but if you are in line tomorrow, I hope the Pizza to the Polls people find you!)

Do I think it’s ridiculous that voting takes place on a Tuesday and / or that it isn’t already a national holiday? I do! Still, it could be more complicated.

Do Astronauts Actually Vote from Space? Election Officials Explain

Astronauts do not have to miss out on voting just because they are on a mission on Election Day—they can do it from space! It happens with the help of a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) system….

Believe it or not, voting from space has been a thing for nearly three decades. According to NASA, “astronauts have voted in U.S. elections since 1997, when the Texas Legislature passed a bill that allowed NASA astronauts to cast ballots from orbit.”

My absentee ballot was also a bit of a to-do, but hassle or not, it is an honor and privilege to share this democracy with you.

We matter. Vote!

“Every election is determined by the people who show up.” 

— Larry Sabato

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Photo by Leif Christoph Gottwald on Unsplash

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We, Not Me

Posted in Other, tagged , , , on October 17, 2019| Leave a Comment »

Canada has an election next week. Politics aside, the Conservative party slogan has been bugging me and now I know why.

Conservative party slogan
“It’s time for you to get ahead.”

Not “us.”

When I first came to Canada from the U.S. one of the things that stood out for me was a subtle but telling difference in language. Driving north, I saw a billboard that read “Let’s remember…” Let us, together, for the good of all. Once I noticed it, I saw that same framing in many other places as well.

I don’t see that as much in the States. I still love my first country but I’m not blind to its faults, either. There’s a lot more “Do this” followed by ”here’s how you’ll benefit,” sometimes accompanied by “or else.” Not “let’s come together to build a better world” but “look out for yourself.” The unstated follow-up is that no one else will. Not so here. No country is perfect, of course, but there’s a reason folks here can see a doctor or fill a prescription and not break the budget.

This tendency to work for the communal good is one of the many things I love about Canada, and one of the things that, regardless of political party, I hope we all remember.

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