Why Politics Matters

On a recent National Public Radio episode, a journalist covers a story of why Americans choose not to vote.  One young gentleman from a Southern state stated that the wealthy has all the power and the politicians have the wealth.

As a child of immigrants, I am very much familiar to poverty.  My family had a booming business in Vietnam that my parents took years of hard work to build and when we decided to move to America, we came with only a few thousands dollars to live on.  The money was used to pay the rent in the earlier months and to buy the necessaries such as clothing and food.  I can remember my mom and siblings rummaging through the clothing rack at second hand stores to save every penny we had.  The inability to speak English prevented my parents from getting a decent job and they ended up with minimum wage jobs in factories near our home.  Living in an impoverished condition is no stranger to my family.

So I understand when an American coming from an impoverished family does not believe in politics and the view of how little important is their votes.   Whatever their reasons on why they do not believe in politics, there are many reasons why it matters, and will always be.

First of all, politics affects every part of our lives, from the food we eat, to the water we drink, to the car we drive. There are different agencies within the government sector to take care of the import and export of the food in America.  There is even a government sector that takes care of the water we drink.  The Department of Motor Vehicle is a government agency that takes care of the car we drive.

Secondly, it affects our income and how much we take home from a pay check. As an employee we pay tax to the government and the people who determine how much tax is deducted are the politicians.

Lastly, it determines our future. The politicians decide on what to do with the budget our country has and how it should be rationed in which part of the America sectors. Should the money go to education? Should it go to the military and defense? Should it go to medical researches?  Base on where the money runs, one can say one chooses a career or a job base on how well the industry is.  If we want to be a doctor, we need to know there are jobs out there and that the government is not getting the way of us working in our medical practice.

Politics is a tricky subject and many people get heated if it is brought up in conversations.  Whether we believe it or not, politics encompasses a large part of our lives and when we choose to live in the shadow and not acknowledging its existence, we become illusional.  The reality is right there, whether we choose to believe it or not.