Editor's note: This was originally sent out in the newsletter on 11/02/18

Unless you have been living under a huge rock lately, you probably know that we are approaching the midterm elections. The closer we come to the election, the more ads that seem to run, it has gotten to a point where sometimes I feel like you can make it through a whole show without seeing real commercials. The signs are in all the yards, on all the corners, and social media… well, it is social media: you know what goes on there. And of course there is the news — that feels like a topic for another day though.

America has fallen hard into its two-party system, this was bound to happen while relying on a first past the post voting system (serious discussion should be taking place more often about changing this — again, an excellent topic for another day), but this seems to be pushing the tribalism even farther. The more we associate personal identity with party lines, the worse it will get. It can feel like a war out there sometimes — “out there” being mostly the internet.
Both parties are telling pushing for their side to believe that this election is a do or die situation. The more the hype builds, the more it pits people against each other, often times things are being taken too far.

There is still room for civil debate and discussion. It seems to be an unpopular opinion these days, but you can talk to someone from the other party and leave friends. Things don’t need to be as radical as they seem. Yes, we all have our own beliefs, but most of the time that doesn’t make the other person fundamentally wrong. It is ok to have different opinions when things aren’t always answerable. To treat people poorly because they have a particular belief or idea though is not ok. Being hateful helps no one.

I encourage you all to go out and vote on Tuesday (unless you already voted early — then I say, good job). Make sure you look into the candidates and find those that align with your beliefs or you think will hold up your values. Sure I could tell you who I think is best, but your values may differ from mine. Democracy works best when we are all trying to get our voices heard in the most civil way.

Links

• This is a review for the Pixel 3, but mostly some great reflections on life.
• There is always a fun list to share, here is one that is supposed to be what shaped our generation.
• Yes, this is another Movies with Mikey link, thanks for asking. (He always makes great content, I can't help it.)

Obviously, it has been some time. I let it slip a little, but I think the break was good. I feel a little better coming back to it now. I need to stay with it. November is also NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), while I don't plan to write a real novel, I am going to try and write a lot more this month. The goal for NaNoWriMo is 50,000 words. I don't really think I can hit that, but I am going to count the writing I do here and I am working on a story for my kids, so we will see how it all goes. Also, I still need to spend less time paying attention to football.

Thanks for reading,
Mike

P.S. Friday always feels right for some reason.