According to NY Times’ City Room Blog (via Gawker), Amber Lee Ettinger – aka The Obama Girl, aka That Girl Who’s Been Showing Up All Over The Place In Her Undies Telling The World To Vote For Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama – did not even bother to personally cast a vote for the candidate in whose name she found widespread Internet fame. Let that sink in. THE OBAMA GIRL DIDN’T EVEN VOTE FOR OBAMA (or anyone else for that matter). Feel your “hope” “change” into “despair” as she explains why:

The problem, she explained, was that she was sick in New York City and was unable to get back across the Hudson River to the polls in Jersey City.

“I was in Arizona for the Super Bowl — every time I get in the airplane I get sick,” said Ms. Ettinger, who did manage to make it to the Svedka Fembot election returns party at Chinatown Brasserie at Lafayette and Great Jones streets.

Is this just another classic example of a flaky fame-seeker putting themselves before any greater cause? Yes, but it’s also a pretty vivid metaphor for the generational apathy that keeps this country firmly planted on its political see-saw, allowing two power-controlling parties to take turns running (or ruining, as it were) things while their ideological differences (which are the only things the mainstream media seems capable of covering) distract us from the realization that they’re ostensibly the same wolves in different (red and blue, specifically) sheep’s clothing. Consider the fact that, if Hillary is elected president, it will be at least 24 years since we’ve had a president whose last name wasn’t Clinton or Bush. And if political awareness among young people has been entrusted to some girl in a bikini, and that girl can’t even be bothered to get out and cast a ballot for the person she’s spent months and months telling millions of people to vote for, can we ever hope for any kind of real change? No, we can’t.

And THAT is why I’m supporting Ron Paul.*

*jk

UPDATE: You know what, I give up. If anyone’s looking for me, I’ll be IN MY NUCLEAR FALLOUT SHELTER WITH A STOCKPILE OF FREEZE DRIED FRUIT AND FUNYUNS WAITING FOR THE END TO FINALLY COME.