When do You Get the Privilege?

There are a couple of interesting debates that I am following. One has to do with lowering the drinking age from 21-years old to 18-years old. The argument is that a young person who is able to serve his or her country in the military, vote for our president, get married and/or have a child might have a right to buy a beer.

The flip side of this (and the irony is not lost on me) is people who want to up the age to get a driver's licence.

Just like every other phase of life, some people are more mature and certainly more responsible. If I had the answer, I might run for office.

In our state, we're also debating a bill that would allow liquor to be sold on Sunday. It's been amended so many times that now you can order a drink in a restaurant or in a sports facility but you can't walk into a store and buy a case of beer. This makes no sense to anyone but all the politicos are rallying.

Hindsight is 20/20. I'm not one of those 15- or 16-year olds waiting to have the freedom of a driver's license. I've never been in the military and I'm so thankful no one put a rifle in my hand at 18-years old. The Sunday liquor law is annoying and I do understand the loss of revenue but of all the problems in this state and this country, this little tidbit doesn't come close to making my top ten.

Wife of ...

I am a product of the women's movement. I like it that we have a vote. I tend to believe that women rule the world, albeit behind the scenes. It's an old saying and I'm paraphrasing but none of these men would've gotten where they are without a strong woman behind him. If I start to count them, I get dizzy.

I haven't marched on Washington. But I would.

We're all labeled with terms like daughter of ..., sister of ..., mother of .... etc. My personal favorite is "wife of." I wish I had a dollar for every time someone has said, "Oh, you're Dan's wife."

I enjoy being his wife. But, I like it a whole lot better when they call me by name.

Voting

I take voting very seriously. Probably because I think everyone needs to know my opinion.

When I was in journalism school, they strongly suggested a double major so I did it. I chose political science. (They forgot to tell us that most of the countries we were studying would change names, boundaries, politics, leadership, etc.) Still, I loved it and it fueled my passion.

I read the editorials and I watch the debates. I read the blogs. Political discussions make some people nervous. Not me! As long as everyone is respectful, I love them. I usually learn a ton.

During the past season of "American Idol," the media pundits kept quoting the number of votes. I was very disturbed that more people voted for the next American Idol than voted in the last election. Maybe people are just lazy. You can vote on American Idol by picking up the phone or sending a text message. Our government could learn a lesson there. I didn't watch it every week but when I watched, I voted.

This is the time of year when The Today Show throws a wedding. You get to vote on everything from the chosen couple to the cake to the wedding attire. This morning, there was a promo about it and the husband jokingly said, "Oh shoot, I forgot to vote."

Not me. I voted for couple #2.