Still time to catch up on issues

In my apartment, it’s not unusual to see my roommates and me tuning in to some sort of fluff television. Lately this includes Halloween classics like “Hocus Pocus” or “The Addams Family.”
But recently we can also be found viewing something ever-so-slightly more important: the presidential debates.
Unfortunately it seems as though very few of my friends and peers did the same. According to statistics published on www.collegian.psu.edu, only 12.1 million of the 67.2 million viewers of the first presidential debate were “college age” (ages 18 – 34).
Although Idaho State University is full of non-traditional students that may fall outside that age range, a large percentage of students here likely fit into the 18-34 category, which I find slightly concerning.
How are college students supposed to voice our opinions on the issues at hand if we’re not informed? Sure, individual research of the candidates’ platforms is the best basis for decision-making, but watching the debates adds a sense of personality and a feel for the candidates’ preparedness and personal stances on issues.
Personally, I found it hard to stay focused on the debates when watching with a group of people. Considering the tense nature of the debates and some of the jabs being thrown back and forth, conversation was getting off-topic and drowning out the debate itself.
I found it particularly helpful to watch the debates again on my own time. Several versions of the videos are available for free online, including highlights reels. For example, the “New York Times” has posted the complete debates on YouTube.
Though the debates might not be everyone’s political cup of tea, there are consequences to not being informed.
For example, the voter registration deadline in Idaho was Friday, Oct. 12. It is possible for potential voters to register the day-of, but some individuals may have made life more difficult for themselves by missing that information.
In addition, I feel that uninformed voting is detrimental to the voting process as a whole. As citizens we all have the right to vote (at least if we’re of age), but we also have a responsibility to be informed.  Making decisions that affect the rest of the country without the proper information seems irresponsible.
I don’t care if you don’t vote the same way I do, I just want you to do so for the right reasons.
For those of you who are already registered, now is the time to be requesting absentee ballots or familiarizing yourself with your polling place.  All of this information can be found at idahovotes.gov.