I voted yesterday, and I have the sticker to prove it.

Our county offers early voting (and absentee ballot drop-off) at the Board of Elections location.

Plenty of people have been taking advantage of that option.

The parking lot was packed yesterday, with police directing traffic in and out from the street, and volunteers directing cars within the parking area.

But the voting process itself was quite smooth.

Full story is here. (The Linser quoted above is our neighbor Alex, btw.)

Vote411.org is a fantastic resource for voters. You can enter your home address and find out who is on your ballot, and compare the candidates’ profiles and their answers to a standard set of questions.

One of the volunteers directing traffic in the parking lot was Brewster Rhoads. He’s the brains and boosterism behind Paddlefest and Green Umbrella (i.e. a “tree-hugger”) and he served as the regional director for Southwest Ohio for a Democrat Governor (Ted Strickland) from 2007 to 2011. So Brewster’s politics are easy to discern. But yesterday, he wasn’t checking cars to see if they were “red” or “blue.” He wasn’t shouting epithets at folks, he was just guiding them to parking spots to make their day a bit easier. He wasn’t pointing fingers unless he was pointing out where to drive. He was kind and courteous to everyone, while knowing full well that many of the folks he was assisting have opposing political views, and were about to go cast their votes accordingly. The polar opposite of voter suppression.

We need more Brewsters in our world these days.

Whoops, wrong Brewster. Here’s the correct one:

Mr. Rhoads was a shining example of Civics 101.

We too often get fixated on the “rights” and forget about the “duties.”

We have a right to express our views, but we also have a duty to be respectful… civil.

(source)

Just because we disagree doesn’t mean we have to resort to name-calling, shouting, Twitter wars… or calling in bomb threats to schools and hospitals in Springfield, Ohio.

When civic education succeeds, all people are prepared and motivated to participate effectively in civic life. They acquire and share the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for effective participation.

It starts with knowledge. Know the facts… and know that just because a lie is repeated and amplified, it’s still a falsehood.

Be an informed voter. Uncle Sam wants YOU to vote… but you need to study up first.

And keep the “disposition” part in mind too. Our political world could use a temperature drop. Turn down the rhetoric, and turn up the kindness toward your fellow citizens. Even the ones with whom you disagree.