With a climate of disillusionment, anger, and resentment as the backdrop for the historic presidential election this fall, it is small wonder that the American people are faced with what is generally considered a disappointing choice.

America has a long tradition of contentiously fought campaigns for chief executive with its oath that demands one “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” It has been suggested that this may prove a daunting task as it is unclear whether all parties concerned have actually read the Constitution of the United States and thus may not have the slightest inkling as to its content much less how to implement it. While this election contains the holy trinity of American politics, sex, money and religion, it is sure to get uglier and will be a topic of debate, books and papers a hundred years from now.

In an interview with a middle aged self-employed man, I was told that politicians are considered liars, cheats, and egomaniacs to start with and any notion of honesty or trustworthiness is nothing if not naïve. Questions of reason, logic or fact do not concern him all that much as he is voting for Trump more to keep a woman from being president than any other single reason.

Conversely interviews with middle-aged women produced an overwhelmingly different result with the common thread that Clinton being a woman was an added bonus to her already impressive credentials.

Interviews with first time presidential voters however produced a wide range of responses which included uncertainty as to the actual process necessary in casting a valid vote, whom to vote for and why, and highly informed youths who plan on voting for a third party candidate as a sign of protest to the dismal process that presidential politics has devolved into.

The majority of 18 to 24 year olds I interviewed have not given much thought to this election, although the ramifications are profound and will affect their generation for decades to come.

With two very stark choices facing the American people on Nov. 8, and as the standard of democracy throughout the world, the onus is upon us to put forth the modicum of effort required to cast a vote, any vote. While history plays out before us we are invited to participate as the world watches with bated breath.