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Health & Fitness

Twas the Night Before the Election, and all Through the State...

...not a creature was stirring! The political hats are off and the sprint for the finish line has begun. You want reasons to go to the polls tomorrow? Fine, I'll give you 5.

By Hillary Pennington

...not a creature was stirring...Oh wait, we all know that's not true, right?  The political hats are off and the sprint for the finish line has begun.  It's times like these that I'm thankful I don't watch regular TV and I don't have a land line.  Between the mayor of Baltimore threatening to send Ogden to West Virginia and illegal robocalls from the self-funded third party candidate for Senate, I'd be pulling my hair out if I had to be subjected to such an array of political folly.

Now, my votes have already been cast, but here's my last plea, whatever you do, let your voice be heard.  But don't just cast a vote for a team, cast it for the person you feel is best for the job.  Do your research.  That's what Google is for, right? And please, don't believe everything you see and hear in a 30 second sound bite.

Find out what's happening in Catonsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Interestingly enough, I'm amazed at how many people in Maryland particularly vote party line, or better yet, throw their votes away on a third party candidate because it's Maryland.  In this deep blue state, it's sad but people honestly believe their vote doesn't count. But that's not true. Your vote always counts people.  That's what our men and women fought and died for, so you would have a voice locally and nationally. Don't waste it.

I'm also amazed at how little people pay attention, how many simply stay home.  The apathy is quite frankly pathetic.  If you don't vote, you have no right to complain. 

Find out what's happening in Catonsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

You want reasons to go to the polls tomorrow? Fine, I'll give you five.

1. President: It's a foregone conclusion that Obama will win Maryland.  Pretty much everyone has conceded that, including the candidates themselves. Or is it? When did we start buying into the lie that Democrats have to win in Maryland.  It wasn't too long ago that Republicans won statewide.  Keep that in mind, peeps. 

2. Senate: Yes, I work with Bongino.  It's not a secret and it's been an amazingly tough and completely satisfying year.  Still, with this shady "Independent" candidate and a 45 year incumbent (who by the way has never had a job in the real world...just saying), every vote will count literally.  Please make sure you vote down ballot.  And when I said earlier to vote for the person, this is race I was pointing to.  When you compare these candidates side by side, there is really only one clear choice. 

3. Congress: With the gerrymandered new districts, most of Catonsville falls into district 7, currently held by Cummings.  The rest of our area falls into District 2 and a small portion falls into the most gerrymandered district in the nation 3.  I encourage each of you research the challengers, Mirabile (7), Jacobs (2) and Knowles (3).  Again, your vote does count.  As Bongino says, cede no ground. I'm not and you shouldn't either.

4. Ballot Initiatives: There are 7 statewide ballot initiatives, 4 of which happen to be extremely controversial and polarizing in nature, but not necessarily partisan.  I'm not going to tell you how to vote, that's not my place, but I will say that the outcome of these referendums are probably more telling about the path our state is taking then who is ultimately elected. 

Question 4 deals will granting in-state tuition to illegal immigrants.  This referendum was petitioned to ballot in 2011.  A true bi-partisan effort, over 100,000 people across the state helped get this issue to the ballot.

Don't be fooled by the word veteran in the language.  It was deliberately put in there to mislead voters.  The bottom line, if this passes, your tax dollars will go to funding continuing education for those that have disregarded our laws. Last time I checked, it was also illegal to aid and abet fugitives, just saying.  Still not telling you how to vote though.

Question 5 deals with the egregious congressional gerrymandering (aka redistricting). This was also the result of a bi-partisan petition drive to referendum.  Just to be clear, a vote against Question 5 means that the state legislature will have to try again, redraw the lines.  Granted we might be back in this same place in 2 years, but I think it might be time to put some feet to fire.  In a state where the Dems can pretty much do whatever they want in Annapolis, this is our way of bringing accountability.  Again, still not telling you how to vote (or trying not to at least).

Question 6 deals with gay marriage.  I'm pretty sure this is self-explanatory, and the libertarian is me is not commenting either way. 

Question 7 deals with the expansion of gaming in Maryland.  More money has been spent fighting for or against this referendum than all the races combined. There is so much confusion surrounding this one issue, it's ridiculous.  Let me be clear, this is not about whether or not you like gambling.  If you remember, in 2008, Maryland passed slots at the ballot.  We approved 5 locations, Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Allegany County, Worcester County and Cecil County.  Today, only three of those locations have casinos.  The powers that be have yet to have found viable candidates for Allegany in western Maryland or Baltimore City. 

Wow, I could devote an entire blog post to the backdoor politics behind this one question.  Quite frankly, I don't have the time, but I will say this...what's the rush?  Nothing in this legislation goes into effect until after the 2016 election, so why are we doing this 4 years out?

The proposed 6th location in Prince Georges county is presumed to go to National Harbor.  While I don't necessarily have a problem with that, I do have a problem with the governor calling a Special Session at the last minute at our expense to push this legislation through so it would be on the ballot in 2012 instead of 2014, when all of our state legislators are up for reelection.  The amount of arm twisting, bribing (tax breaks for casino owners) and dealing that went on in that brief 3 day period is astounding to me. 

5. It's your Duty!!!  It's outrageous to me how many Maryland citizens aren't even registered to vote, and of those that are, many don't even bother.  This is our country.  Who cares if you're not the political type.  It's not about politics.  It's about our future, our children's futures.  And it's not like it takes a ton of effort to stay informed.  With all the information highways available at our fingertips, I can't imagine why anyone would give up their right to cast a ballot.  This is your country, your state, your city, your neighborhood.  It matters.  It all matters.

The people we elect make choices everyday that affect our lives...every single day.  It matters, and I'm asking you to believe that. Don't let your apathy fool you.  Whether or not you vote, or worse yet, vote ignorantly, you will be affected by the outcome of the election.  Your family will be affected.  Your wallet will be affected. Your healthcare will be affected. Everything will be affected. 

Polls open at 7 am tomorrow morning and remain open until 8 pm. If you don't know your polling place, you can find it here, along with other information like who's on the ballot and the exact wording for each initiative. The lines might be long, but I'm telling you, it's worth it.

Vote on November 6.

Oh and if you'd like to come watch the results with your friends at Purple Elephant Politics, join us at the Westin BWI at 8:30 pm, hosted by Bongino for Senate, Harris for Congress, Maryland for Romney, and the Maryland Republican Party.

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