November 08, 2016
Scribe Staff
“Finally,” is what many of us will think to ourselves once we know who the next president is.
The exploding political internet will be no more, arguments between friends will end and we can go back to bantering about other issues, whatever those may be.
For over a year and leading up to Election Day, college students have been pounded to vote, being told that we make up one of the largest percentages in the U.S. to make a difference.
Several political figures have visited our campus to urge us to turn in our ballots, including Republican nominee Donald Trump and Colorado Senator Michael Bennet.
But once we learn and eventually accept who the next president will be, we stop rallying for what we believe in and we move on, because what can we really do about it after?
People who threatened to move to Canada or any other country will most likely stay put and go to work or school the next day.
People with opposite views of the current president will always exist, so what can we do to stay active in political decisions and make sure our opinion counts?
Aside from voting for one person, amendments and important decisions still need to be voted on every year. The amount of involvement we decided to have in this election should happen every year.
It’s easy to believe that not voting on an amendment as simple as raising the taxes will not have an effect on us, but maybe something better would have happened to our cities or states if we did vote on these issues, whether the vote was for or against it.
Without our opinions and strong stances on different issues, whether it’s on legalization of marijuana, same-sex marriage or Black Lives Matter, inspiration and change doesn’t happen.
Imagine the impact we could have if we remained as informed and passionate every time a ballot showed up on our doorstep.
The issues on our ballots for our cities matter just as much as the next commander in chief.
As ironic as this sounds coming from a newspaper, media shouldn’t be the ones telling us when to care the most about politics.
Media should also pay closer attention to local issues that need to be voted on when reporting in the years between elections.
We understand it can be difficult to stay up to date with research on top of working and going to school full time, but resources do exist to help us out.
According to Impact, keeping informed in politics is easy, we just have to fi gure out what works best for us.
Several options to stay on top of what’s happening include joining a group that’s working on certain issues, volunteering to help with a voter registration drive or on a political candidate’s campaign.
Participating in protest marches or rallies, staying informed and voting are also ways to keep a part of the political process happening in the U.S. and in our state.
Another way to stay informed is to download apps or read through websites on local and global issues and take 10-15 minutes every day to catch up.