Elections

The hype and fliers are everywhere. So and so failed to do such and such when he/she was in office. So and so is promising such and such but can she/he deliver? Emails urge me to vote for the candidate who will do the most for the arts or for education or about taxes.

While on a break from one of my writing classes in Wheeler Hall at Cal Berkeley on Saturday, I overheard a young woman wearing a Calpirg sweatshirt on the phone. "We can't let the oil companies get away with this," she said in an urgent yet polite tone to a voter.

How do we decide the myriad complex issues on the ballot? I read through the pamphlets, the sample ballot, the cards that came in the mail. I went to the Oakland Mayoral candidate panel at City Hall. The promises sound good. Everyone wants the best for our children, for our schools. We all love the arts. So what is the problem with making my decisions and putting my pen to my absentee ballot? I'm used to reading between the lines, trained in analyzing literature and poetry. But I find it almost impossible to read between the lines of the propositions, candidate statements and initiatives. What will the effects of this or that vote really be?

I care and so I vote. I will probably end up voting for what or whom I think will help the principles I hold dear, but I will also vote for any candidate I think I can trust. It boils down to trust, doesn't it? I can't know what it would be like to hold office and face all those conflicting needs and demands, but I vote in hopes that we can make sure our children have a good education, that we take care of our environment/ resources, and that we advance justice and equity.