Thread by @sccs

Sitting here, writing up some thoughts about what's on the ballot in Texas this year, and feeling like maybe I shouldn't bother. The demotivational aspects of the media are getting to me, and it really pisses me off. #GOTV

I mean, *I* care. I got involved in 1992 as a Presidential Year voter. By 1996, I became an Early Vote devotee. In 2006, that expanded to every damned election, every time. I was SO MAD that Rick Perry won the Governor's seat with 39%. #GOTV

I stayed mad. Nearly every election cycle, I saw success locally (City/County/TX House & Sen), but watched the Democrats get their clocks cleaned in TX. I couldn't figure out what was happening. It's turnout. We love to vote every 4 years. Midterms? Nah. #GOTV

So when we elected Obama, I was thrilled. But I was bawling that night because my state government was a shitshow. By 2010, I was despondent on the couch on election night because I saw the writing on the wall. Blowout stateside, and redistricting was coming. #GOTV

And redistricting HAMMERED us. What had been a #TXLege close to parity became a Republican supermajority. But most everybody else was too busy being complacent because we had the White House. Presidential Year voters are not enough. #GOTV

So, here we are at the midterms again. We have something that might be momentum. I'm guarded, because I've had my feeble hopes dashed every damned midterm since 2006. I'm exhausted. I'm angry. I'm still voting, and I'm still encouraging others to do the same #GOTV

But I'm also hyper-sensitive to defeatist language. I'm touchy about people who write off ANY state. "Oh, well, it's just Texas/Florida/Georgia/Alabama/Mississippi" kind of crap sets me on edge. EVERY STATE IS WORTH IT. ALL OF THEM. #GOTV

There are people like me in each of these "backwaters." People who are trying to make a difference, who are trying to make it better for themselves and their fellow citizens. Who are we to write them off? Who are we to rain on their parades? #GOTV

Sure, be realistic. But can we be honest WITHOUT being brutal? Can we recognize the fighters, even while we note that it might be a Sisiphean fight? When you're not gonna "pull punches" could you stop a sec and think about why you're throwing a punch at all? #GOTV

I guess what I'm trying to say is this: Vote. No matter what the media tells you, no matter who says it's hopeless, no matter how many times you're told that it's usless and that your vote doesn't matter. Vote anyway. Even if it's just pure spite. #GOTV

I'll keep trying to educate people on a local scale, because I don't have a larger platform to work from. I'll do my own research, based on folks like @lwvATX and @LWV who only repeat what candidates themselves say. I'll meet as many candidates as I can myself. #GOTV

Maybe it'll make a difference, maybe it won't. But it's what I *can* do. And I'll probably keep bristling at every article that undercuts my efforts by telling people that it's all a foregone conclusion anyway. </soapbox> #GOTV

Early vote starts October 22 for the November General Election. timeanddate.com/countdown/elec…
If you're in TX Senate District 19, Early voting is going on NOW. Vote for @petegallego