Some polling places ran out of ballots. Others had armed police officers present, a violation of state election rules. Some voters endured hours of waiting, in some places as long as eleven hours, and malfunctioning ballot machines, a few which stubbornly voted for the candidate that the voter did not choose. Pollsworkers ran out of ballots or people who weren't registered by a pollworker voted by sneaking into the voting booth through a side door.

How does a young person make it in today’s economy? How does someone just getting out of college with an education financed by students loans get a job that leaves them enough money to pay their loans, eat and drive to work.  The economic slowdown is affecting young people. Finding a job has become harder. And getting that first job is more important as costs of basic goods and services are rising. Food is more expensive and the price of gas has gone up dramatically. Despite the decrease in home values due to the mortgage market crisis housing is still very expensive.

I started out in the progressive movement through the amazing fellowship of Young People For.   As part of the introductory class (2005) the camaraderie between the fellows as well as staff was high and genuine; never before had I experienced such a feeling of support and understanding around issues that were important to me.  Often times I ponder the opportunities given, the people I have had the pleasure of meeting, and the relationships developed because of my involvement with YP4.  During this time the thought which emerged was “where would my activism be?”