Forgive us for bludgeoning a poor dead horse, but we have to stress the importance of voting one last time.
Whether you Chomp the Vote, Rock the Vote or Vote or Die, it really doesn't matter to us as long you get to the polls and fill in a few bubbles.
The process is painless.
You drive yourself to your designated polling spot, and from the entrance, you are guided through the building by a series of volunteers.
You can't get lost. You don't need your own marker.
Short descriptions of each referendum or amendment are right there on the ballot, and you can pick up a second ballot if you botch your first one.
The most difficult part of the voting process is getting your lazy butt off the couch and making it to your designated precinct.
We aren't saying you should vote simply because it's easy. The point we're making is that there is no valid excuse for not voting. A busy schedule is not an acceptable reason for staying away from the polls. We're all busy; that's why early voting exists.
And forget all this nonsense about this election being the most important election of our time. You shouldn't need a dramatic tagline to entice you to cast a ballot - this is a presidential election, not a Michael Bay film. Every election is important regardless of whose "time" it is.
The 1996 contest between Sen. Bob Dole and Bill Clinton wasn't unimportant or irrelevant just because most of us were 10 years old or younger. Richard Nixon's 1972 re-election campaign was just as significant as the 1988 race between George H. W. Bush and Michael Dukakis.
The absolute worst reason for not voting that we've heard was from someone who said they didn't like either of the presidential candidates. There is something inherently wrong with this point of view.
There are far more than two candidates. The donkeys and the elephants don't get every vote. They might get most of them, but they don't get them all.
Third-party candidates Alan Keyes, Ralph Nader and Charles Baldwin, to name a few, have all been nominated for the presidency. Their names certainly aren't as familiar as Sen. John McCain's or Sen. Barack Obama's, but a lack of name recognition doesn't translate to a lack of relevance.
You never know; Objectivist Party candidate Thomas Stevens just might be the man you deem best for the job. His chances of moving into the White House and becoming commander in chief may be slimmer than LSU's chances of repeating as BCS National Champions, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't vote for him. If you believe Stevens is the right guy, then forget about McCain, Obama and their media frenzy. Go with your gut.
Every student at UF is well-educated, but a college education is not required to realize the significance of voting. If you have common sense, then you can easily figure out what kind of impact the government has on our daily lives. There should be no hesitation when it comes to voting. It should be an American reflex.
You've got one day left. Don't flounder in your apathy or wallow in your laziness: Catch the bus, wait in line for a bit and get your "I Voted" sticker.
You get one chance every four years. You shouldn't need more reason than that.
