Time To Become An Active Citizen

Yep, that's a picture of Paul Ryan, folks.

I recently met a girl who told me that she was so excited to turn eighteen. And it wasn't because she would finally be "free from parental rule" or "be able to buy tobacco" (okay, so I've never met anyone who actually counted down the days until they could legally purchase the keys to lung cancer, but I digress...)

No, this girl told me she was excited to turn eighteen so she could vote. To vote. I was not that good of a person when I turned eighteen! These are the kinds of amazing people I had the opportunity to meet and talk to at a fundraiser to support the Romney/Ryan campaign.

Now, to make everything clear: I have, up until this week, paid very little attention to the claims made by both presidential candidates, because my mindset has been that politics make grown men catty and that my vote doesn't make a difference.

So then why did I go to a Romney fundraiser? Because if I went, I would be able to see Paul Ryan in person. And since I'm a human being, I really just wanted to be able to say that I saw someone famous. Kind of like when I went to that devotional featuring Condoleezza Rice freshman year. I knew nothing about the Bush administration, but I figured it'd be a good experience (also she was famous). That's what college is for, right? We study and pick the brains of scientists, lawyers, teachers, politicians and make our own conclusions based off of what we study. We come here to learn, so might as well take every opportunity we can to do as such (and see famous people).

You should have seen me when I saw Tom Cruise at Disney World. I was totally starstruck.

ANYWAY, my friend Judy from California just started school here, and she posted on Facebook that Paul Ryan was coming, and that people should go with her. So I thought, why not? Friends from home + cheap price for students + once in a lifetime opportunity = a perfect way to spend a Wednesday night.

And a perfect way to see famous people. Clearly I don't have the heart of a die-hard political activist just yet.

Luckily I ran into Brittany, a girl from my new ward who quickly showed me the error of my ways, and that politics are important and interesting and cool to get involved with. (And yes, she is the one who was excited to vote when she turned eighteen. She is awesome.)

So while we waited those couple of hours for Paul Ryan to come out and speak, all of us college kids sat and discussed politics and government and I learned a lot about the upcoming election. I just loved hearing what everyone had to say and to teach me. Really, it was an amazing experience.

Finally, it was time for the speeches. Josh Romney came out to as the "opening act" for Paul Ryan. He shared how his dad taught him about the founding fathers growing up, and other facts about what it was like growing up with Mitt Romney as a father. But my favorite thing he said was that Mitt makes a point to surround himself with people who are smarter than he is. This way, he learns more, AND builds the best camaraderie of the brightest people to achieve the best results in whatever goal he's working towards. I love that philosophy, and I'm definitely going to make a personal goal to integrate that philosophy into my own life. Everyone has something that they can teach us.

Then came Paul Ryan. I honestly really liked a lot of the things he had to say. He talked about how it was good that Mitt Romney was a successful business man, and I agree with that. Since when was America about putting down other people's successes? It's called the American dream. He also talked about how providing job opportunities and economic growth was a key part of what they would work to achieve if elected, and that it was important to them that college students would be able to actually obtain jobs that they were educated for coming out of college. I really, really like that. 

Oh, and I got to shake his hand. I wish I had photographic proof, but the situation was kind of like what you would see on tv at a red carpet event. Even though we were in a big old conference room, there was a barrier in front of where he stood to speak and that we mosh-pitted behind. And when he was done, he walked by the barrier to shake people's hands where he could. I just kind of reached out my hand because it goes back to the famous thing. I mean if he gets elected, I shook hands with the vice president. If not, it's still cool. :)

However, I still don't know who I'll vote for. This event inspired me to be a more active, educated citizen, and inspired me to go out and do my own research to determine my vote. I am excited!

And side note: I really could get used to going to these fancy political shindigs. I mean, for students we were able to go for $20, but most of the people there paid $1000 to go. So yeah, the atmosphere was very classy. The event was catered, they had a full-service bar, and even the water was served in wine glasses. I felt like a fish out of water, but it was so nice! I'm really glad I had the opportunity to go.

Me and Judy!