…but just for fun.

Unless you are a United States (U.S.) citizen, it’s not going to count. I was, however, impressed by what I saw at roughly 3pm on Wednesday, September 24, 2008. Now, let’s keep in mind that this is still new and the word hasn’t been spread all over the world yet, so the numbers will definitely be updated.

It’ll be fun to see what the final results are after November 1st.

Will it have any impact on the U.S.? I doubt it.

Is it supposed to? I don’t think so.

Do people know all of the issues and where the candidates stand on them before voting? I’m going to have to say, “Some do, and some don’t.”

Do U.S. Americans know all of the issues and where the candidates stand on them before voting?, I’m going to have to say, “Some do, and some don’t.”

Do I know all of the issues and where the candidates stand? I’ve read a summary once, having been following the race as best as I can, but I will most likely review everything again before casting a vote.

When we’re voting, we vote based on our preferences and how we feel a candidate can best serve us. Some people’s preferences are based on a single issue while others span many issues. Past experience and current conditions can also affect a vote, as well as emotions.

One of the funny things I found was a comment made by someone that probably echoes what’s on everyone’s mind when it comes to elections, in general.

To find out more about the Economist’s World Vote, click here: http://www.economist.com/vote2008/

The above screenshots were taken while visiting the Economist website. All copyrighted material of The Economist obviously belongs to The Economist. On a side-note, great use of the map and colors; nice Flash skills. I like that.

Copyright of the New York Times. For info, click here.

More monkey pictures, here.

An excerpt from the New York Times:

Indeed, the Montgomery County registrar, E. Randall Wertz, said several students had canceled their local registration over their worry about the possible consequences. Mr. Wertz said he had issued the release to try to dispel confusion and explain what he believed to be the consequences of choosing a college address as a primary residence.

“My understanding of state law has been that by declaring you’re voting here, you’re saying this is your primary residence, your domicile, and that while you can have many abodes or residences, you can only have one domicile,” Mr. Wertz said. “And if this is your primary residence, you have to register your vehicle here, charge your driver’s license to here and so on. That’s been the interpretation at state training sessions.”

Source: nytimes.com

There are many students who attend a university outside of their hometown. I, was one of those students, as were many of my friends. Voting was important to us, so we registered where we lived for the majority of the year during college- in our college town. It was very difficult, and sometimes unfeasible, for students to return home to vote during elections. One reason, many elections take place during weekday. There could be conflicts with class schedules or work. Another reason was that the distance, for some, was just too much.

Many towns and cities benefit from having a university- and university students- in their territory. Why not afford them their right to vote? Four years may not seem like a lot of time for permanent residents of a community, but for the college student that takes notice, it’s time not to be wasted.