I’m breaking my silence on this blog – which was not really on purpose but things got busy – because today is election day in the United States. Politics has been something I have tried not to write about. Not because I don’t have opinions or beliefs. More because I’m a bit of a coward and didn’t want to deal with any backlash from trolls or people with differing opinions.
It wasn’t always like this. In high school government class I regularly got into political debates with another student who had very different political views (I’m pretty sure who he will be voting for this time around). More than once I was called a communist. I would correct them and say I was a socialist. Much like today in the US, the differences between communism and socialism don’t really matter to those who throw it at you like it’s an insult.
To this day, I believe that we as a society should take care of each other. I think companies and those with wealth have a moral and social responsibility to give back to the community that helped them achieve said wealth. The workers who are the reason why these huge companies (or even smaller ones) are able to make billions of dollars a year should be compensated and taken care of instead of taken advantage of.
I believe that healthcare should be universal and that people should not be at the mercy of insurance companies who decide what sort of healthcare you get to receive based on your premium. Those who say they don’t want the government deciding on their healthcare have never worked in a GP’s office trying to get approval for an MRI for a patient. They’ve never had an insurance rep tell you that they wouldn’t approve a second mammogram in a year for a woman dying of breast cancer.
More controversially, I am for strict gun control. Very strict. Like they have here in the UK. And to top it all off, I believe that abortions should be available to all women who want or need them, full stop. It’s none of my business why a woman gets an abortion, they don’t have to justify it to me or anyone else. It’s their own decision and no one has the right to question them or get in their way. I could go on for both these topics, but I won’t.
Now that that’s out of the way, you can probably guess who I voted for. Yes, I did vote even though I am months away from becoming a UK citizen. It may be the last time I vote in an US election (that’s something that’s still under consideration) but I still have the right and it was important for me to do so this time.
As I sit here in London, with the polls are slowly opening in the US, I’m apprehensive. Ok, that’s an understatement. I’m terrified. Despite my best efforts to not look at polls, I am well aware that it’s a close race. Closer than it really should be, in my opinion.
I’m afraid what will happen if the orange menace and his minions (that’s the kindest way I can say that) are in control of the country. I fear for my daughter and my friends’ daughters. I fear for anyone who is part of the LGBTQ community and for anyone whose skin colour isn’t the approved shade of white. I fear for those people who came to the US looking for that American Dream that has been so proudly advertised for ages. For those documented and undocumented people who just came to the US to have a better life and have worked their asses off to do so.
I could go on but it only increases my anxiety. It’s likely going to be a difficult couple of days, if not weeks or months. My hope is that everyone stays safe. If you live in the US and can vote that you do (or have). Please vote blue and if you don’t, please don’t bother leaving me a comment. While everyone is allowed to have an opinion, yours has lost all credibility if you choose to support the orange one or anyone who has chosen to pander to him.
On My Mind 