A Haven for Vee

Monday, November 1, 2010

Vote Smart and Giving Thanks Challenge

Oh I am so excited about voting tomorrow. More excited than I have been in a decade. I found a great little tool online that helped me figure out some of my choices. It's called *Vote Smart.* It allows you to answer questions on a variety of topics and find the candidate who thinks most like you. That is how I vote. I am not molding my opinion to match the candidates' opinions; I am looking for the one who best agrees with me.

I found this post via Mosaic Monday. It's called *Why Women Should Vote.* It is a powerful reminder of the not so long ago days when women in this country didn't have the right to vote. Did you know that ____? No, I will resist the urge to fill in the blank. Please read it for yourself and you'll be very glad that you did. Rett at The Gazebo House did a wonderful bit of gathering for this one.
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In other news, Leah at South Breeze Farm is once again hosting her *Giving Thanks Challenge.* You can check it out here or on my sidebar. I will be posting a daily gratitude for every day of November right in my sidebar. (Then I'll be saving it and placing it somewhere on my blog to remember by.) I have tried to participate every year, though I missed last year because of the broken computer. (I'm beginning to sound like a broken record mentioning a broken computer twice in succession.) So it's obvious that I am grateful for a new computer and I'm grateful that my beloved pays the bill for access.

My goal is to put serious thought into this challenge and to be intentional. I will not be listing the obvious: my God, my faith, my family, my love of country, my love of friends, my home, my cat, my clothes, my car, my possessions, etc. This could get interesting! I know that Leah would love to have you join us and so I'm inviting one and all to participate. Let's get our "giving thanks" groove going!

22 comments:

  1. Vote Smart sounds like a great tool. Maybe I should pop over and see who I would be voting for...if I were voting in a US election! I've heard enough ad's to know all about the candidates...the good and the bad.

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  2. It will be interesting to see how closely your vote smart application works. .I hope many that think similarly to you ..use it.
    We'll all be happy up in Canada when the voting is complete. I guess that is what we get for relying on Amercian televsion for our entertainment.
    I get a bit caught up in it. .and I'm not even American.

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  3. I am going to go over the the Vote Smart site. That sounds very interesting.
    Hugs,
    Penny

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  4. Wonderful post, Vee. Each election day I always remember my grandmother who was not "allowed" to vote until she was 27 years old. From that time until she was unable to, she voted in each and every election.

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  5. I can never understand why people don't vote, especially women. It's a right that was hard-won by brave souls before us.
    We'll be watching from Canada to see how the voting turns out.

    Your thanksgiving challenge is a great one, even though we won't be sitting down to a dinner at the end of November. Giving thanks should be a daily event. I love the challenge to not include the obvious things. You've begun well.

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  6. I'll happily vote, as I have every election. I will be sooo happy when this election is over, however, as I have never seen the amount of negative ads as I have this year and I can only imagine how bad the ads for the next Presidential election will be.

    http://factcheck.org/ is also a wonderful, non biased web site to use to see if what they say on all these politcal commercials are true.

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  7. Oh I agree, Pat. Elections are messy and I'm sick of the ads. We'll all be able to say, no matter what our leaning, that we're glad that it is over. Yup, I'm sure of it. Thanks for the link.

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  8. I have used Vote Smart before and it is quite a wake up call on who says what and means it. Don & I voted before we left NC because it is not only a right it is a duty. You can't complain about anything if you didn't care enough to vote. Good post as always.

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  9. Actually, have been doing some checking on F*act C*heck dot org and there are lots of widely differing opinions about how unbiased a site it is. I can tell you honestly and without reservation that Vote Smart does not have that bias because it is based on your own opinion and no one else's.

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  10. I am up to the thanksgiving challenge. Going to check it out now.

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  11. Thanks for sharing the Vote Smart link. It sounds like a great tool for learning more about what the candidates really believe. I will be checking it out next.
    I look forward to reading your giving thanks posts. I really like the idea of not listing the obvious.

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  12. Yes, I hope everyone votes! We had municipal elections last week here in Ontario. I think if you don't vote then you should not complain. If you DO vote then that's a totally different matter.

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  13. Vee, We are thinking along the same lines :>) My post is about voting tomorrow and giving thanks today :>) I love the vote smart site and have used it this year. Thanks for the site link about women's right to vote. I will use it tomorrow in my post too. I am looking forward to reading your list of things you are thankful for. I hope you have a wonderful week.

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  14. Hi Vee, thanks for the Vote Smart link. I'll sure be voting tomorrow. This election is one of the most important ones, in my opinion. I will have to say, tho, that I'll be glad when it's over...I won't miss those annoying political phone calls! Or the ads.

    Have a great day,
    Cheryl

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  15. What a great link! I will certainly take a look and also at the Giving Thanks Challenge.

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  16. Thanks for the voting tool. We sure need to be informed voters!

    Glad to meet you and look forward to the Giving Thanks challenge!

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  17. Checked out VoteSmart and it just confirmed my choices. Thanks for lsiting this website.

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  18. Well, I can't believe, for one thing, that it is voting time here again! What wisdom you all need in this day ahead.

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  19. I am looking forward to voting tomorrow Vee, and am thankful for the privilege to be able to do so. I am looking forward to your thankful list for this month. Thanks for the sites.
    Hugs,
    Sue

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  20. Hi Vee, I am glad you posted about Leah's challenge. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday so I will gladly participate:-)

    Rhonda

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  21. Thank you so much for adding a link to my post within yours, Vee. I'm honored that you felt it was worth mentioning. I did not write it all, the majority of it was by a local journalist, Connie Schultz who writes for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. I gave her credit at the top, so I hope others didn't think it was all mine. The movie she referenced & that I embedded in my post is terrific & inspiring. I hope you get a chance to watch it on my blog or rent it for your living room TV.

    Your story about the gum & your voting day was funny. Our polling place DID have coffee & doughnuts (for sale) available. LOL

    Thanks for telling us about vote Smart, too. I'm bookmarking it for the next time.

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  22. I'm so glad I found your blog via the Giving Thanks Challenge. I too am paritipating, and I'm looking forward to following along.

    It's so good to intentional about being thankful. So often, I find myself taking so much for granted.

    Blessings to you!

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