Athens — We survived another election year.  What a year it has been. I feel like the campaigning for this election has lasted longer than a president's term in office.

It has been a tough election and one that may have divided this country. I know it divided friendships.  It’s an election not many of us will soon forget.

I have learned something about myself during this election process. But more importantly have learned things about people who I have always considered friends. Politics will ruin friendships and split families. Sad but true.

I learned I have the opportunity to have my voice heard with my vote. If my candidate fails, it just means the voices of the other voters were louder than mine.

I am one of those people that will vote every time they open the doors. I vote every election – city, state, school board and national. I just believe it is the duty of all American citizens to exercise their right to vote.

So many countries don't have that right.  How lucky are we, that our country gives us the right to vote, and the right to voice our opinions. 

Who I vote for is a personal choice. I make my decision at the polls, and can sleep at night, because I made the decision that was right for me. My decision may not be to everyone's liking, but then again why does it have to be?

On Tuesday night, when the presidential election was called, I was totally amazed at the mean things that were being put on Facebook. Still today, they are blowing up Facebook. Again I have said all along, Facebook is not the place to rant and rave. 

There is another election in four years. Again, we will get the chance to have our voices heard.

I am hoping most people who vote don't take it lightly, and are voting because they believe their candidate is the best person for the job. My candidates wins about 50 percent of the time. The other 50 percent, I just wait until the next election, and try again. What I don't want to do is hear about this election for the next four years.

When my friends cast their votes, I am not going to call them names because they refuse to vote the same way I think they should.

I have seen some horrible name-calling on Facebook. The problem with all that is you really don't know who you are talking about, or who you are talking to. Nobody has named me or anyone else the Nazi voting police. You vote my way, or off with your head. 

That may sound a little radical, but the things I have read on Facebook are placed there by what seems to be radical people. This surprises me, because I know these people. They never seemed radical before.

When all the dust settles, I hope my friends can continue to be friends. After some of the name-calling, that may be difficult. It is so hard to take back the the spoken word. The saying, “The less said, the better,” sometimes will work to your advantage.

Years down the road, this election will just be a part of the history books. We all will have new issues to complain about.

If you don't like the outcome, make sure you vote in future elections. The only way to have your voice heard, is through your votes.  Name-calling will not solve your problems.  All name-calling does is create more problems.

There are a lot of issues in this country we will need to deal with in the future. Let's all hope our representatives in Washington tackle the real problems, and don't create more. There must be some middle grounds both parties can agree upon.

Our representatives need to go to Washington, and fight for a better tomorrow.

With the results of this election not even final, the cable news channels were analyzing the 2016 election. Let's take a breather, and get this one behind us, before we decide who will be president in 2016.

There was a time you could have a political discussion, and walk away shaking hands. Those days seem to have disappeared. Shame on us.

E.A. Bucchianeri said about elections, “...They say if you don't vote, you get the government you deserve, and if you do, you never get the results you expected.”

In the words of Rodney King “Can't we all just get along?”

Kathi Nailling is a Staff Writer for the Athens Daily Review.