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He Said, She Said: Politics, Turkey Dropping, and Dancing

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at JCU chapter.

What is your opinion on young voters? Does their vote really count?

He Said: Here’s the thing about American elections: you vote whether or not you want to. Let me explain…America operates on a two-party system, and these parties are basically huge mosaics comprised of different demographics. Democrats, for example, include blacks and other minorities, college educated whites, and college educated women. Republicans include working class whites, capitalist-minded college educated whites, and women without a college degree. Obviously, there is fluctuation, and many people from these demographics identify with the other party, but for the most part, the majority of these demographics affiliate with one of these parties. What this means, is that the presidential candidate for a party is dependent on getting your vote. If you are a young Latina woman, for example, Hillary Clinton is depending on you to show up and cast a ballot for her. Donald Trump knows he is not going to get your vote, so what he is hoping instead is that you WON’T vote, or will “protest” vote for the Green or Libertarian party. We all fit into a demographic that makes up one of the two major parties. In other words, not voting or voting for someone else is a vote against the candidate your demographic is supposed to support. This year, think about voting not in terms of individuals, but in terms of demographics.

She Said:  With the electoral college and the fact that I would have to vote absentee, it seems irrelevant and useless. With that said, however, I do think it is important to exercise one’s right to vote (especially minorities and women because we have fought so hard for it). A basic right of all Americans is to be able to vote and participate in our democracy and that is where my belief that it is important comes from. So, with that said, go out and vote because you have a right to do so, no matter who you vote for!

So I guess its cuffing season? What is the “turkey drop” and should I participate? 

He Said: There is no shame in getting out of a relationship that isn’t working while you can. You gave it a shot, tried to stick with the high school boo for a few months as college starts, and you realize now that there just isn’t a future. You argue too much, he doesn’t trust you, and look at all these long, tan, handsome men struttin’ their stuff around campus. If you start to feel like a relationship is holding you back from living the college experience, then Thanksgiving is a perfect time to “Turkey Drop” him. This way, you can do it face to face. Also, let’s face it – Thanksgiving is your last chance before you are buckled in for the long haul. After Thanksgiving, it is the holiday season, and what kind of monster dumps her significant other a week before Christmas?! Then Valentine’s day is right around the corner, and you can’t be alone for that, right? Then comes his birthday, then spring break, then summer vacation, then….yea, just drop him  at Thanksgiving. He can bury his sorrows under 10 pounds of turkey.

She Said: As a girl in a long term and happy relationship, I cannot say that I will be participating in the Turkey Drop, however, I do see valid reasoning behind it. Thanksgiving break is a time right before a massive amount of holidays and seasons that are 100% not ideal to end a relationship during. So, as he said, drop him like a burnt piece of turkey and don’t feel bad about it!

Is dancing dead?

He Said: Yes. Dancing is dead. Well and truly. And you know why? Because dancing isn’t FUN anymore. It used to be that a man would ask a woman to dance, and they would stand a few feet from each other and jam to the beat, show their moves, and try to charm each other. If things went well, you might get a slow dance. I’m not even talking about the 1950s. This was as recent as the ‘90s. Dancing was meant to be sexual too, of course, but there was an important aspect that is now missing—fun. These days, “dancing” is overtly sexual, wherein women gyrate against men’s groins, like baboons in heat. Dancing now instead feels less like a great opportunity to get to know each other and have a good time, and more like an evaluation, a competition to show skills in bed without any nuance. A slow-burn flirtatious relationship is fun. Dancing, making each other laugh, being witty and showing interest in those subtle, clever ways is FUN. Grinding on each other is too aggressively on the nose. Let’s knock it off with this. Let’s make dancing FUN again.

She Said: Yes and no. As a former dancer of ten years, I firmly believe dancing is and is not dead. In one sense, on dates and at school dances, it seems as though dancing is completely sexualized as the girl doesn’t even face the guy anymore during it. It has become a competitive activity of who can rub crotches together better than someone else. Therefore, when considering that aspect, dancing is dead. On the other hand, dancing is constantly evolving, just like language is, and I feel that even though now it is becoming more about sexuality than ever before, there are still people out there dancing and making a life of it because it is fun and new. So, in conclusion, think twice before grinding on that hot guy the next chance you get. Maybe try picking up a dance class and actually truly dancing next time instead of automatically turning around and bending over to “show off your moves.”