2022 Election: Rise or Fall?
This is only a novel, but remember, the “falling” part of Rise and Fall is often traumatic. I could’ve shown the ruins of Nazi Germany here, but I think you get the picture. Let’s do what it takes to rise instead!
The phrase “Rise and Fall” has been used a number of times in literature or media – “The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire,” “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich,” “The Rise and Fall of the British Empire,” or even “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.” Great album, by the way!
But unfortunately, “falling” is not as far out of the realm of imagination for Americans as it was a few short years ago. I don’t need to tell anyone about the tragic coup/insurrection/mob at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, where hundreds following the orders of a leper messiah sent shock waves through the nation. The U.S. Supreme Court just ruled in the Dobbs decision to literally take reproductive rights away from millions of women. We’ve had widespread election denialism in states across the nation, plus flat-out (allegedly) criminal actions from Tina Peters – an actual Colorado elections official! Climate change threatens our forests, water supplies, species existence, and air quality. Mass shootings like the recent killing of 19 kids and two adults at Robb Elementary in Uvalde keep happening.
Throw in a still-dangerous COVID pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, global food shortages, refugee crises, racism and sexism in America, and rampant homelessness. It’s almost enough to make me wish the Starman waiting in the sky would try to meet us. But I’m not quite ready yet, and I hope you’re not either.
With our vote in the 2022 election – done properly – we can do some real good for the world. I hope readers and voters will take the time to carefully weigh the pros and cons of the issues and candidates in this election. I personally will look at issues on this ballot through the lens of – will they help us rise, or will they make us fall? This is not an easy question for some of this years’ issues, and we might need to make choices based on net future impacts, not on talking points or slogans designed to appeal to peoples’ baser instincts.
I invite all readers to get off social media for a little while, dig into some of the details I’m providing, and make informed, well-reasoned choices in a vitally important election!
The Act of Voting
Opinions are fun, but not worth a hill of beans if people don’t vote. Fortunately, it’s ridiculously easy to do in Boulder and Colorado, and here are a few last-minute pointers:
- All voted ballots must be in the hands of election officials by 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 8. HOWEVER: voters who are in a physical line at 7:00 p.m. will still be allowed to turn in their ballots.
- If you still have a mail ballot to return, DO NOT put it back in the mail because it won’t reach elections officials in time to count. Instead, hand-deliver it to your County Clerk’s office, an official polling center, or an official drop box. Here’s a link to locations for Polling Centers and drop boxes: https://bouldercounty.gov/elections/information/voting-locations/#vote-centers
- Visit the Boulder County Clerk’s website at https://bouldercounty.gov/elections/ or call (303) 413-7740 for any questions about the act of voting. Or, if you don’t live in Boulder County, contact your appropriate County Clerk’s office.
- It’s legal for someone else to drop off your voted ballot, but people can only drop off 10 total ballots for other people.
- If you haven’t registered, or don’t have a ballot, don’t despair because you can still vote! See the next three bullet points:
- If you didn’t get a ballot, or lost/destroyed your original ballot, contact your Clerk’s office to learn how to get a replacement. Or, visit this webpage: https://bouldercounty.gov/elections/information/voting-locations/#replacement-ballots
- In Colorado, people can register to vote right up until 7:00 p.m. on November 8. I’ll highly recommend doing it earlier, though.
- It’s also still possible to vote in person at a Clerk’s office or polling center, of course only until November 8 at 7:00 p.m.
No matter what, happy reading and happy voting!
Election 2022: The “Short” Version
As we get closer to Election Day, people will naturally have less time for deep research. Readers can just click this link to see my mostly short recommendations on every ballot measure and candidate race on the 2022 ballot.
Election 2022: The Recap
Elections are not really done after the votes are counted. It’s also important to look back and understand what we, the voters, have done. Whether ballot measures were undeniably fantastic or potential mistakes, we ought to be ready to consider next steps because times and conditions change! Here is a link to my recap of some of the highlights and lowlights of Election 2022.
BUDDY, CAN YOU SPARE A DIME?
This year’s ballot is ridiculously long, with lots of detail. Even a small donation will help make the hard work worth it, and thanks in advance!