One More Week

Editor's Note: Just re-read this and realized it's a bit of a rant. I could change it, but I won't. I'm sick.

For the past two days I have been poured on to my couch, mindlessly flipping through channels while waiting for the sweet kiss of death to save me from this flu. I have watched "The Bourne Ultimatum" at least twice and decided that it actually should have been called "Crash, crash, punch, punch." I have watched cooking shows that Food TV only shows at 8 in the morning, because they were produced in someone's basement and use roadkill as a main ingredient. I have watched kids shows that look like acid flashbacks. And I have watched news. Oh, how I have watched news. And all of the news I have watched has convinced me of one thing: everyone must get out and vote for Obama, and encourage others to do the same.

You see, right now Obama has a comfortable lead in the polls. Things are looking good. Democrats are ordering tuxedos for inauguration parties, and making plans to get that Cheney smell out of the drapes in the White House. The thing is though, there is still time to lose this election. And getting too cocky is just one way to do it.

I can just see it on election day. Obama is ahead at least nine points in the polls. Democrats are happy, and excited. They go to the polls and see the long lines. They think "oh, well, if all these people are here voting for Obama I can go play hacky sack" and take off. But, little do they know that all of the people in those lines have been transported there from senior centers and conservative Christian day camps. And they are all voting for John McCain. That night Democrats will watch in horror as their worst nightmare comes true: John McCain wins, but then has a heart attack from the shock of it all, leaving Sarah Palin to assume the Presidency.

So, we all need to vote. I don't care how long the lines are. Take a book. Knit a sweater. Hold your breath. Just stay there until you get to cast your ballot. And before you do that? Tell someone about why they should vote for Obama.

I don't know if you have noticed, but as the election has gotten closer, people have gotten crazier about what they believe about Obama. The latest rumor is that he was born in Africa and wants to destroy America once elected. First of all, under the Constitution no one not born on U.S. soil can hold the office of presidency. Second, even if they could, why would being an immigrant instantly make someone anti-America? Isn't immigration kind of what the country was founded on? Great melting pot, anyone? Wouldn't someone who sought out living here maybe appreciate it even more? Okay, but that's beside the point. The point is that as these rumors get more and more ridiculous we can either laugh at them, or we can make sure others are not believing them. Laughing at them probably won't stop them from creeping into the minds of the uninformed in the voting booth though. So, it is important to dispel the rumors, wherever you hear them. On the bus. At the store. At the dinner table. From your crazy grandmother and her bridge club. If you hear someone spouting this nonsense, CORRECT THEM. Do it politely, but do it. If you don't the crazies spreading these lies win. And trust me, the stuff you will hear will only get crazier as the days wind down. You think calling Obama a socialist is bad? Just wait.

Oooooh, I think my head is about to explode. I juse have so much hope about this election, and so much fear that Obama won't win. Because if you think about it, there really is no reasonable explanation why he shouldn't. However, he still could. Bigotry, and ignorance could collide with overconfidence and laziness and cause an election day explosion that will launch McCain and Palin right into the White House.

We all just have to make sure that doesn't happen.