-Nobody ever has a constructive argument about politics. Ever. If a political discussion breaks out at a party, you can find me on the opposite end of the room, usually within about 30 seconds. I enjoy a good argument, especially when it's about a particularly trivial subject. However, some arguments turn bad (during the 2006 Rose Bowl, Bergman and I almost got in an alcohol-fueled fistfight over who would have the better pro career after 5 years, Vince Young or Matt Leinart.) And a typical political discussion between otherwise rational people is the equivalent of Bergman and I arguing about sports after 15 beers and 15 Skinny Pirates each: people get angry, become unwilling to listen to the other's opinion, and end up holding a full Miller Lite can over the other's head, threatening to smash them in the face with it.
-I don't follow politics enough to know what the hell I'm talking about. No one to blame but myself for this one. My brain spends its free time trying to figure out the least-talented college basketball team to make it to the championship in the 1990s (Syracuse '96) or wondering if Puff Daddy and Notorious BIG really set up Tupac to be shot in their recording studio (without a doubt.) What I don't spend my time thinking about is Obama's plans to fix the economic downturn, or McCain's strategy for the Middle East. One day I will grow up a bit and care about real life issues, but that day is not November 4, 2008.
-Along those same lines, I have never cared enough to actually form my own opinions. Therefore, I am a default Republican. As is typical in North Dakota, my parents are way, wayyyy right-wing. Growing up, I was raised in a home where Bill Clinton was basically the anti-christ. These biases stuck with me, and now I am conditioned to automatically hate all things Democrat- which I do, through no thought process of my own. It annoys me that I have no original thoughts on an important topic, so instead of voting for something that I am uneducated about, I just don't vote at all.
-I don't really like any politicians. In my mind, they all lie, they're all dirty, I don't have good feelings about any of them. I've never felt positively inspired by a single politician in my entire life.
-I'm just lazy. While I have been blaming some of my apathy on society and such, this one is also entirely my fault. I am completely entrenched in the camp of 'my vote doesn't matter, I'm just one person' and this is, admittedly, an awful mindset to have. Part of it ties to me not caring enough; if, say, Kirk Hinrich was running for President, I would be busting ass to my district precinct to cast my vote. But as it stands now, tomorrow I work until 5, have a city league basketball game at 6, and KU has its first game of the year at 7. Plus I'm out of Special K (with red berries, booyeah) so I need to fit a trip to HyVee somewhere in there too. I'm not making the extra effort to go do something I don't care about anyway.
Hinrich/Collison in 2012: they'd win at least one state.
So just in case I'm not making it clear enough, I don't think I'm cool because I don't vote. I just have a mental image of me sitting in my room listening to Radiohead, telling you that voting is for losers, and then asking you to help me hit this fat-ass joint before my parents get home from work. This is not the case: I wish I was more involved in important issues such as the election. Plus I'd never smoke weed with you, you bogarted the shit out of it last time.
