Rethinking My Vote

Most everything I know about politics I learned from watching Jon Stewart and The West Wing. I admit it, I'm not wonky that way, and the Sportscenteresque political coverage annoys me. Who cares if more people approve of Mitt Romney today than yesterday? And let's just say that I have a pretty good idea of how the sausage is made, and it's not pretty. Policy changes follow polls, positions shift on a dime, mud is slung and re-slung, and I have as good an idea of who Angelina Jolie really is as I do the candidates (I take that back: I have to admire someone who tattoos the birthplaces of her children on her body. Now that's commitment.)

So I was curious to meet Elizabeth Edwards at the BlogHer '07 conference in Chicago, and even more curious to meet her again with my fellow Silicon Valley Moms on Saturday. She was warm, personable, genuine, and deeply thoughtful about things that I care about: education, health care, sure, but mostly: people.

As the parent of a child with special needs, I am intimately touched by all these issues. Education, because my son's current program just...doesn't...work. Don't get me wrong: the teachers are committed and talented, and they genuinely seem to care about my kid. But school starts at 9:20 and ends at 12:20, so how exactly does that serve working parents? We have found a temporary fix, but this isn't sustainable long-term, and I shudder to think about the families who just give up because it's too hard to make it work. Don't even get me started on the healthcare. If you visit the Autism Society of America Web site, you'll find approximately 17 treatment options for autism, just about none of which are covered by health insurance. With one in 150 children being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, this is a national crisis and a national shame. So the political has gotten a lot more personal for me this time around.

Meeting Elizabeth made me realize that if I vote for her husband, I have, for the very first time, a pretty good idea what I'm getting. And that made me rethink my assumptions about who and what I was really voting for. It was a smart move to connect with the mom bloggers: we're not just out here writing about little so-and-so's stomach flu (though we do), or the great pedicure we got down the street (though we do)--we're having a national dialogue on raising and educating the next generation. That is political, and the Edwards camp is listening. (Hint to other candidates: are you listening too?)

I admit I haven't done the research yet on the Edwards health care plan--too busy juggling day to day. But I do know this: based on what I've seen of Elizabeth Edwards, I believe this campaign views policy in a complex and human way. I appreciate that. I respect that. I may even vote for it.

Comments

[kyra]

i am with you. i love her. i wish she was running.

[kristen]

Oh, I am so politically at wit's end. So much promise, so little fulfillment. And evil rises to the top. I am a discouraged American.