I can’t take it. These past few weeks, the only political shows I can watch are “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” because they are the only shows I can find that make fun of both candidates and the ridiculous stories about them.

I know at this point the idea of being an undecided voter may seem strange, but I still can’t decide which candidate is the lesser of two evils. Believe it or not, there still are undecided voters out there.

As an undecided voter, I have made fun of both candidates’ stances on different issues. These knocks have somehow convinced my decided-voter friends and family whom I will vote for. This is my problem. They believe they know who I will vote for, but for some reason I don’t.

My father has told me he is going to vote for Republican presidential candidate John McCain. I don’t have a problem with that. We have watched speeches by both McCain and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and I have made fun of both candidates because of what they say and do. My father, a McCain supporter, has ignored the Obama slams. But after arguing about McCain (since he was the subject), my father is convinced I am voting for Obama.

One of my best friends says he is voting for Obama. I don’t have a problem with that, either. He has gone in the opposite direction of my father. He has ignored the slams against McCain and only paid attention to those about Obama. He is convinced I am voting for McCain because I have bashed Obama.

So who am I voting for? I guess everyone knows but me.

Unless I announce to the world who I am voting for, everyone thinks I am voting for the opposite candidate. I don’t understand this. Many people who have already made their presidential choice do not believe in the undecided voter.

I have been ridiculed for not deciding yet. I will never completely throw my support behind a Democrat or Republican because I will never agree with them on every issue.

The constant ridicule I have received for being an undecided voter has deterred me from wanting to stroll to the polls on Tuesday in order to cast a ballot. I may just not even vote.

Does my vote even matter? It is widely believed that Obama is going to win Michigan’s 17 electoral votes. So it stands to reason one more vote for or against him will not make a difference. There are many undecided voters who believe this and therefore won’t vote.

This is my first opportunity to vote in a presidential election. Shouldn’t I be more excited? The actions of the candidates during this campaign have made me despise certain aspects of the political process.

I always hear, “It’s your right and civic duty to vote.” This makes me angry. If I have the right to vote, then I have the right not to vote as well.

I am one who often complains about politics, but my friend who is voting for Obama made a good point. He told me “If you don’t vote, you can’t complain about politics.” I realized he was right.

It’s not the actual vote that matters, it’s the idea of doing so that counts. After all my complaints about politics, one simple statement convinced me otherwise. Come Nov. 4, I will venture to a voting booth. Who will I vote for? I still don’t know. But at least I will be able to complain about it afterward.

Chris Vannini is a State News staff writer. Reach him at vanninic@msu.edu.