Tt post jul 26 2015

"When I say voters I mean everyone who is and has the ability to vote and can do so legally, just because they are too lazy to vote doesn't excuse them from being idiots either."

Some of my friends are Toledoans who don't vote because politics means nothing to them, and those non-voters are not idiots. They live productive lives without knowing the names of their district councilpersons.

The flip-side is that non-voters view the political geeks as idiots. My theory from about 10 years ago:

Maybe the majority of the population [non-voters] are laughing at the people who are making a big deal about politics.

I could see casting votes on ballot issues, but why should we vote for people? What's so damn special about someone's name on a ballot?

You know that a certain percentage of voters have no clue what's going on in politics. So why should a voter like that be praised just because he or she went to the polls, but someone who chooses to ignore politics is criticized for not voting?

Most of the non-voters won't gripe because they don't care. And I don't have a problem with their non-caring. Maybe they're too busy simply living to care about politics. They're focused on doing the best they can to provide for themselves, their family, and their community. And they don't need politics for that.

2013 mayoral election results in Toledo and Perrysburg

The approximate "real" voter turnout for the 2013 mayoral elections:

• Toledo : 23 percent
• Perrysburg : 31 percent

I retired from voting after the November 2013 election. It felt oddly liberating not voting in the 2014 elections. I'll only come out of retirement if the Opal Covey machine gains momentum, but I don't see that happening.

Now, I'm only a casually interested snarky observer. It's pretty cool not voting and still sort of complaining when the mood to care hits.

#toledo #politics #humor #moronism