The moment is at hand...

The moment of truth in politics is at hand...the day we finally get to vote and bring an end to the madness of all of those rancid TV ads. The voting process is as much about ending the mud slinging as anything.

I'm one of those dreaded Independent voters, not willing to be permanently labeled with the identity of either of the political parties. As much as anything that is because both seem to have drifted off to the extreme edges of the philosophical ideologies that they espouse. Both seem to have various litmus tests that they apply to test the purity of thought and commitment that one might have towards their agendas. I refuse to play that game

I try to look at the candidates and discern how they might think out and vote on future issues, based upon their past records or public statements. That's a difficult task, given the amount of negative information, many times inaccurate or colored in its delivery, that fill the airways during the campaigns. I try to vote for the best people for the job, no matter which party they happen to align themselves with for purposes of getting on the ballot.

This year we are also seeing lots of candidates run for office who have never held elected offices before. There have been numerous articles written about whether that is a good or bad thing, with most leaning towards bad, since some level of political savvy is deemed to be a good thing. While I suppose having some understanding about how things work in government could be a good thing; many of these candidates quite correctly point out that things haven't exactly been working well for some time using the old methods. Perhaps there is value in having a bunch of new people in office who are not necessarily bound by "how things work around here."

So, tomorrow I'll go to the polls armed with what knowledge about the candidates as I've been able to discern in the din of political shouting. I'll cast my votes for some candidates from either party and maybe even for some that don't identify with either party. I'm sure that not all of the candidates that I vote for will win, but I'll feel like I did my part to uphold the original intent of the democracy that we live in - I will have voted. You should, too.