Undecided voters should get informed

The election is fast approaching and as a decidedly decided voter, the phenomenon of the “undecided voter” is an enigma to me. Most people assume that undecided voters remain undecided because they are either too busy or too apathetic to get informed. I suspect, however, that those that are too busy are avoiding the issue and those that are apathetic really suffer from a lack of conviction. More likely these would-be voters are confused about their own principles. And this, combined with the fear of taking a political stand, prevents them from making up their minds. After all, pressure from family and friends can make standing alone in support of one particular candidate a scary prospect.

 Becoming an informed voter, however, is both easy and important.

 First, you must evaluate the differences between the candidates. In the case of John Kerry and George W. Bush, this is fairly easy. There are many very important differences between them and all you have to do is get informed. Being busy is no excuse because we are all “too busy,” but many of us manage to stay informed anyway. This is simply a matter of setting priorities.

 The second and most crucial step is deciding which issues are most important to you, and to do this you must first understand your own principles and values. For if you are not conscious of them, how will you ever be able to recognize them in someone else?

 For example, the principles of individual freedoms and rights are most important to me, and therefore, I plan to vote for Kerry. Although Bush talks often of his love for freedom, his actions suggest a misunderstanding or even contempt of the idea. For example, Bush has held American citizens in prison for three years without access to an attorney and without charging them of a crime—acts condemned by the United States when they occur in countries such as Iran, North Korea and China.

 The final step is an easy one. Based on steps one and two, you simply select the candidate that shares your views on the issues most important to you. Notice that this means you may not agree with every single viewpoint of your candidate of choice. That’s okay as long as you agree with the candidate on the issues that are central to your life.

My advice to all undecided voters is to forget about the spin, news headlines, and views of your family and friends and instead do some soul searching. Once you’ve identified the principles and values that are most important to you, you can then do the easy part. That is, use the thousands of available news sources, web sites, and campaign flyers to find out the candidates’ views. Then, go out and vote.