On the surface of the day, things appear to be normal. Students are going to class (hopefully), teachers are teaching (hopefully), and the leaf blower machine is making a ruckus around campus (necessarily). It’s a good day to be here at Southern Oregon University — like pretty much all days.
But below the surface of this day is a feeling of excitement. A few students gather outside the Stevenson Union with their signs and dancing ballot box. Text messages come in from students talking about what they will be doing later in the day. A student thoughtfully fills out a ballot, while others stop by the Voters Coalition table to pick up some “swag” or stuff. There are vote buttons and lollipops here — a nice combination. I’ve always thought election day should be a national holiday like Thanksgiving or the Super Bowl. It seems just as important a day. We could all take the day off to eat, drink, and gather around our wide screen televisions to grumble or cheer on our candidates. What a day we could have.
Jen'r Horste fills out her ballot in front of the Stevenson Union Tuesday.
Economics Professor Doug Gentry asks, “In most other states people have to stand in line at a polling place. Yet some say that the physical act of going to vote builds a stronger sense of community. They argue that Oregon’s system of mail ballots takes that away from us. What do you think?”
Having the day off would be a good way to build community. In Oregon, the convenience of knowing your vote is collected in a less technologically dependent form may be comforting for some. From what we’ve seen on television and the Web, waiting in line to vote may be a form of community building, but not necessarily the most effective in terms of interaction. Instead of waiting in line at a polling place, people in Oregon are using their time in different ways. For example, our students are attending at least 8 or more election night gatherings. Although these communities are pretty homogeneous ideologically, at least people exercise their right to assemble.
One thing that I truly believe helps to bring people together is the use of new media such as text messaging and social networking. It’s a much different form of community though. Online communities are not the same as face-to-face interactions, but they are still a public space where conversations happen.
08vote.wordpress.com 