American sense of pride in voting is energizing

I have a bad habit. OK I have a lot of bad habits but like many, my biggest form of procrastination takes the form of hours spent social networking, in other words time wasting on Facebook when I should be proactive.

It was on one of my latest bouts of procrastination that I had the realization of another great thing about America.

It started a week ago when one of my friends made a frantic plea via Facebook:
“Does anyone in NY have an absentee ballot they are not going to use? If so, can I tell you who I am going to vote for and you fill it in?? I'm totally serious!! Thanks!”

A flutter of responses later, Veronica didn’t have an absentee ballot but instead several comments from friends offering solutions to her problem.

Then on Monday came the Facebook invite:

“Tomorrow, Nov 2, you have a chance to make a real difference in the world. Please join me and all of your friends and go out and vote, wherever you are. It's happening in every town, in every state.”

Even the President Obama tweeted yesterday about suffrage "After you vote, tell your Facebook friends -- 'I voted.'"

Then new trickled through on my news feed all day, as my American friends proudly told everyone they had made it to the ballot station.

It occurred to me I had never witnessed such a pride in voting before. Cynics could say it was just political influence on social media. But no one could argue with the countless people who tweeted and commented their way through their online day with resonating pride in voting.