COLUMN: Jesse Ventura: The single best reason you should vote

From Andrew Exum's, "Perilous Orthodoxy's, Fall '99 From Andrew Exum's, "Perilous Orthodoxy's, Fall '99If you're reading this and haven't yet registered to vote on November 2, leave whatever class you're in and register right now. Why? One reason: Jesse "the Body" Ventura. Governor Jesse Ventura. In a recent interview with Playboy, which hits newsstands today, Governor Ventura -- in his continuing effort to alienate everyone in America -- describes religion as "a sham and a crutch for weak-minded people who need strength in numbers" and the Navy Tailhook scandal, in which women were sexually molested and degraded, as "much ado about nothing." Speaking about overweight Americans, Governor Ventura offered the following gem: "Every fat person says it's not their fault, that they have gland trouble. You know which gland? The saliva gland. They can't push away from the table." And theorizing on the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Ventura claimed that the president was killed by the "military-industrial complex" in an effort to prolong the Vietnam War, which Ventura says Kennedy was attempting to end. What a statesman. For just a moment, forget the fact that Ventura is a former Navy SEAL and professional wrestler. Forget that Ventura is the clown prince of American politics, the most high-profile member of the Reform Party and a rebel who seems to spend as much time refereeing professional wrestling matches as he does governing his state. Forget that he ever wore a feather boa and paraded around the wrestling ring doing battle with such villains as Hulk Hogan and the Iron Sheik. Forget that Ventura, who starred alongside Arnold Schwartzenegger in Predator, is already a colorful character in the national political scene and has made such offensive and outrageous comments before. In other words, forget that we have come to expect such antics from Governor Ventura. Instead, ask yourself how someone like Ventura gets elected governor in the first place. In a democracy, you get what you pay for. If the citizenry takes an active interest in its government, credible and capable candidates are likely to emerge. If citizens look at politics as an amusing carnival sideshow to everyday life, then you get clowns like Ventura. If that's the type of person you're looking for, fine. If, however, you're one of those people who would rather their elected officials refrain from regularly insulting every minority group in the phone book in their daily speeches, then get out there and vote. Saturday, I sat in the Zellerbach Theater and listened to Sam Katz and John Street -- the two major candidates for mayor of Philadelphia -- answer questions on issues ranging from race relations to crime to school vouchers. It suddenly hit me that -- for the first time in recent history -- Philadelphia, a staunchly Democratic town, has an honest-to-God mayoral election that will come down to the wire. All the more reason to vote. The election is by no means decided yet and every vote counts. For the past week, Penn students supporting both Katz and Street have lined Locust Walk registering voters. Even if you're registered elsewhere, you can still vote in Philadelphia as long as you don't vote elsewhere this year. Penn students have long been accused of being apathetic about the city around them and politics in general. Today, when you register, and on Election Day in November, you can defy that perception by casting your ballot and effecting change within the community one vote at a time. When you vote, you cease to be a silent voice in society and begin taking part in a system that directly affects you. Even better, you take steps toward preventing buffoons like Governor Ventura from holding significant public office. At the end of his Playboy interview, Governor Ventura commented on his life after politics. He said, "When I'm done I'm going to go into seclusion for six to nine months and grow out my hair. Then I'll go back into public, where I'll be unrecognizable." That time can't arrive too soon. As for the present, get out and vote.