Vote

I put off doing Mondays with Marty this week. A Monday column during election week didn't seem to matter as much. Thus here is a Tuesday, Election Day column. I feel especially inspired to write because I just got back from voting. Although I'm still on the fence about computer voting, believing that they must somehow be susceptible to hacking and vote tampering, I nonetheless get a big swell of patriotism whenever I push that "Cast Ballot" button. It seems mildly miraculous that with all the hoo-hah and commercials surrounding the election, that I actually get to be an active participant. So there's my exhortation to get out and vote: as athletes, we are conditioned to be people of action, not passive observers. Voting is no different. In fact, it's better. We get the chance to change history.

I'm not going to tell you how I voted, or stump for any one candidate. I wander back and forth across party lines with my opinions and selections, so it wouldn't do anybody much good anyway. But I will admit to a sense of relief that it's all coming to an end. I have watched with bemusement as the "Yes on 8" and "No on 8" factions here in California have clogged street corners to stump for and against gay marriage. I can't help but think, somewhat cynically, that this all bears a resemblance to a similar initiative on the ballot in Ohio (?) four years ago, which was basically a get-out-the-vote rather than a true test of morality. I have read with equal bemusement emails from a friend who is also a pastor, telling me at this critical juncture in our nation's history that nothing else matters but the sanctity of life and gay marriage -- I'm not saying he's right or wrong, but I can't remember America being at a bigger historical crossroads. A little perspective is in order.

These are strange times, my friends, and it makes me feel good to know that "Cast Ballot" means I can be heard, albeit without uttering a syllable. We will wake up tomorrow morning with a new President-elect. He won't be a marathon runner, an Ironman, or even much of a jogger -- my usual character barometers. But I am optimistic, no matter who gets the nod. Both candidates are men of substance, who have endured enormous personal trials to get where they are today. Both men were not their party's first choice for the job. And neither man is what I would consider bought and paid for.

So I feel good about my vote, and I feel optimistic for our country. The times, they are a changin... and right now we need change in a big way.

Go vote.