[speaker001:] Well, well, Pat, did you vote in the last election?
[speaker002:] Most assuredly.
[speaker001:] Oh, you did?
[speaker002:] Yes ma'am. I've voted in every major election since I turned twenty-one.
[speaker001:] Oh, that's great. Well, why do you think,
[speaker002:] Don't always
[speaker001:] people don't.
[speaker002:] vote for somebody. I sometimes vote against somebody [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] That makes sense too.
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER] I think that a lot of it is, uh, I know that my late husband was simply indifferent. He didn't feel like he had any say. There was too many people, too many [talking] other votes. For example, you know, he'd say, Well, look, you and I see different sides of the fence. If I go vote you'll cancel my vote.
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] I said, I sure will.
[speaker001:] And,
[speaker002:] He said, So, I just won't vote. I said, Then mine counts,
[speaker001:] Then does,
[speaker002:] because you could cancel mine too.
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER] Yeah, I think, I think, that's a lot of people, just indifferent [NOISE]. I know that
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] I've moved around a lot. In the past, um, three years I've had three different addresses.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Each time I change jurisdictions or whatever.
[speaker002:] Sure.
[speaker001:] So I just haven't, because, I mean, graduate school or whatever, so I haven't kept track of it. I did, when I lived steadily in one community, I always, I voted.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] But this past time I didn't. Well, actually I voted it for the presidential election, but then I didn't vote
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] uh, I guess, in the two year for, uh, some legislators and things and,
[speaker002:] Well characteristically, in some, in the local elections
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] typically those people who vote are those who feel very strongly about an issue.
[speaker001:] Right, uh-huh.
[speaker002:] If I do not feel very strongly about an issue, then I see no reason to go vote.
[speaker001:] Right, yeah, and that's probably one reason why I voted in the
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] the last election, but not really this one
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] because this one really didn't matter that much.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] Yeah, it's probably true.
[speaker002:] Well, of course, of course listening to government, the instructors, you'll find out that everything matters,
[speaker001:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker002:] but then you could go crazy worrying about everything.
[speaker001:] Well, you know, they also say that most people vote their local politics, that, that local is far, much more important than, uh, national
[speaker002:] Well
[speaker001:] issues.
[speaker002:] that's the way you get to national
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] and that's the way you make changes about
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] your neighborhood,
[speaker001:] Oh, I definitely think so.
[speaker002:] Uh, I know that I have been involved in preparing and in, in, uh, carrying out a lot of the local petitions that take place.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Even something so simple as getting a street light in between
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] lights on the end of the block.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] But it makes a big difference when it's the difference in having a child run over
[speaker001:] Yeah, that's true.
[speaker002:] in the dark.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] And, uh, it took a close call to wake us up and cause us to take
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] that kind of action, and that's completely unnecessary. In another particular case they were trying to [inhaling] put in a, um, senior citizen's home
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] in, in an area very near our neighborhood, but if you just cross that major street, the character of the neighborhood changes, and it's less savory.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Okay. And that, I was just very, I felt very strongly about that, those people simply did not have access to safety, to security and they were at risk.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And it was for elderly people who lived alone, and they were going to put a cluster of, of houses there for them. But even clustering together for the elderly does not ensure safety.
[speaker001:] No, most now, that's true,
[speaker002:] And all it, all it did was to, in my judgment, make them,
[speaker001:] Prepare them to be,
[speaker002:] easier targets
[speaker001:] victims, yes.
[speaker002:] Uh-huh, yeah, easier targets, and so we, we did get a petition together and we very strongly resisted it, and it was placed in a actually, it was placed clear, closer to my neighborhood
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] but it was on the,
[speaker001:] Right side,
[speaker002:] right side of the street.
[speaker001:] of the tracks, yeah.
[speaker002:] And, uh, it, it, I think that they're, they're much more comfortable there.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh. Did they,
[speaker002:] Uh, I haven't seen too much crime in my neighborhood, although we have a good crime watch program
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] but it's, it's very serious
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] just across the street.
[speaker001:] Did, um, did you think, I know that Texas's last gubernatorial, uh, election probably brought out a lot of voters.
[speaker002:] Well.
[speaker001:] Did that, did that seem to, because that re-, that got national attention, national attention, I guess, having a woman governor
[speaker002:] Well.
[speaker001:] running against a man and whatever.
[speaker002:] No, I don't think it had to do to with woman running against man. I think it had to do with dirt running against dirtier.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And that's it
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] it was a dirty election. People were calling each other, uh, names and every bit of the trash, it was a, it was a dirty campaign. It was a dirty, mud slinging campaign.
[speaker001:] Well, you know, what's funny, up here, uh, I live, I see a lot of Virginia news
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and I guess, uh, Senator Robb and Governor Wilder
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] are active right here, and they have some type of wire tapping problem
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] going on, and the people in Virginia are complaining, see Robb is married to Lynda Bird Johnson
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and the people in Virginia are complaining that he is, he's using Texas politics in Virginia
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and they're really complaining big time, because they said that We don't have that type of trashy politics up here like they do in Texas all the time.
[speaker002:] Well,
[speaker001:] So you, you guys were getting
[speaker002:] of course, now, that's not all the time. We've had some pretty
[speaker001:] yeah, you were getting slandered, I think,
[speaker002:] We were having some pretty healthy
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] uh, campaigns that were based on issues there for two or three of the gubernatorial races
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] but, I, historically, Texas [phone ringing] has had mud and muddier campaigns
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] I mean, it's just, I think that eventually, you know, the better people have sensibilities and they vote on those people who are least likely to do damage. Unfortunately, that's not always the way it should be.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] You don't want to vote for the person who is least likely to do damage. You want to do the one who can do the most good.
[speaker001:] Do the most good, yeah, that's true.
[speaker002:] And, uh,
[speaker001:] I guess that's why, I know that, um, I'm previously from Pennsylvania
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and Dick Thornburg who's now the attorney general
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] is going to run for senator
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] because, uh, John Heinz, a senator from Pennsylvania, died in an airplane crash
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and I know that they're expecting a gigantic turn out to landslide Dick Thornburg into, as, into the senate
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] because they don't like the governo-, the governor's political appointee, or whatever
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] and they're almost expecting landslide
[speaker002:] Uh-huh.
[speaker001:] out, uh, turn out, right now
[speaker002:] Okay, so you
[speaker001:] for [LAUGHTER] for that election.
[speaker002:] So, you see, that's very negative motivation
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] isn't it
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] isn't that too bad. We really could use a little positive motivation
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] hey, we think this guy can really make some changes and we're going to support him.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] That was true in a lot of cases in, in a couple of the older sixties campaigns.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] Uh.
[speaker001:] What, in Texas, was that when, you,
[speaker002:] No, I'm talking about national campaigns.
[speaker001:] That's, that's true.
[speaker002:] Yeah. Uh, even when John Kennedy was elected, there were so many strikes against him, but there were people who believed he could make a difference.
[speaker001:] Right.
[speaker002:] Now, that's not to say what has transpired or what really was, I'm saying
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] that's how it was perceived.
[speaker001:] that's, right, that's perception, that's true.
[speaker002:] And, uh,
[speaker001:] Because the, those were big political, that was a big, um, turn out
[speaker002:] Oh, yeah.
[speaker001:] election.
[speaker002:] Absolutely.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] And, and it was people going to vote for, I think, more than those who voted against.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] I know, I know that in my own, uh, area of people, whom I knew and how they were going to vote, they didn't go to vote against, uh, a politician as they did a little bit later when Nixon was running.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] They went to vote against the less of, lesser of the two evils in certain cases.
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] [Inhaling] But I think that one was one that
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] you had some very strong feelings among people, and they voted their convictions.
[speaker001:] Uh-huh. Well, I think that also happened with Ronald Reagan.
[speaker002:] Absolutely.
[speaker001:] He was
[speaker002:] You're right.
[speaker001:] he was landslided in and people really saw that was,