The Final Debate: Who won?

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The final presidential debate of the 2012 election is finally over. “Who won?” is the question of the night on social media.

It is clearer than ever that this will be a very close and tight election coming up this November. The split is right in the middle and even the debate itself made it clear as both candidates were shown on a split screen and not together until the very end. It is a good analogy for the country at large. It is at this point a close call and call too close to tell. Democrats claim victory for President Obama and Republicans are declaring Presidential hopeful Romney a clear winner. The truth is that until election time and the counting of the votes we will not know. Polls are either split in the middle or a few points one way or the other.

Each side is claiming a victory on their Facebook pages and on Twitter. Team Obama’s tweets are high-five in nature, claiming a huge victory. Team Romney tweets that Romney passed the commander-in-chief test during this debate.

Twitter wasn’t as active during this debate as it was during the second debate, perhaps because the tone from both candidates was calmer during the third and final debate.

Bret Baier tweeted after the debate that there were almost 6.5 million tweets about the debate. For the rest of the night, political pundits will be spinning the debate to the right or the left.

For boomers throughout the country, this election may be the biggest of our lives. Our economy is, as Archie Bunker would say, “in the toilet.”

Many baby boomers are looking toward an uncertain future with no possibility of retirement in the near future, investments that have tanked and rising expenses with no end in sight.

In two weeks, Americans will hit the voting booths. The next two weeks will see intensified ads from both candidates, especially in the swing states.

In Virginia, each day’s mail brings 5-10 pieces of political mail from both sides of the aisle. Each mail piece points the finger at the other side for all of the wrongs in the country.

If you’re like most adults in the country, you may be a little tired of hearing, “and I approve this message” every few minutes on the radio and on TV.

Bruce Springsteen will be in Charlottesville to perform at a free concert this week as part of a campaign push for President Barack Obama.

Rick Santorum has been on the campaign trail in Virginia for Mitt Romney this week. Both candidates have made their presence known throughout Virginia during the campaign and that trend will continue for the next two weeks.

Perhaps the best line from the final debate was uttered by the debate moderator, Bob Schieffer, who quoted his mother. “Go vote. It makes you feel big and strong.”

Voting is a privilege in many countries, but has been considered a right in America since the beginning of our country. The History.com website shares an article by Ed Crews about the first election in the new country, held shortly after the first permanent settlement was set up in Jamestown.

Although the Electoral College rather than popular vote will determine the next President of the United States, you can’t complain if you don’t vote. Get out on Nov. 6 to raise your voice for the candidate of your choice.

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