“Politics were never really of any interest to me growing up,” said Kim. “But I’m tired of seeing my friends enlist in the Armed Forces only to be thrown into a war they don’t understand.”

Like many of his fellow college students, the 2008 election is the first time Kim will be old enough to vote in a presidential election. Attending George Mason was the first time Kim attended a public school. Kim attended a private school in Fairfax County since elementary. Because of the private school’s extremely conservative views, Kim said he was sheltered from the outside world and all the nuisances of war.

Like many of his peers in high school, Kim examined his situation and thought about enlisting in the military. “I never thought George Mason would accept me,” he said. “There must have been a fluke in the system, or I was just very lucky.” Fortunately for Kim, he was accepted and given the chance at a college education. However, with this chance came more responsibility; something he said wasn’t really ready to accept.

The first two years of college were hard for him, as his closest friend, Jin Lee, was thousands of miles away fighting in Iraq. Because of limited finances, Kim dropped out of college his second year to try and make enough money to support himself by working on cars at a garage. Kim had more to pay for than his education. He had to ensure he made enough to pay off his car, afford rent on his apartment, and have enough money to spend on his girlfriend and the others necessities of life.

He sometimes thought how things would have turned out had he joined the military. However the stories he heard from Lee made him realize that his decision to go to school may not seem like the easiest path, but the right one. Lee is currently serving his second tour in Iraq.

“They call him pops now,” says Kim, referring to his friend. “ It’s been four years since he joined the military but when I last saw him almost a year ago, he looked old. Not in the sense that a couple of years passed by, but his hair had grey patches, face had wrinkles, but more than anything his eyes looked, I don’t know, just not the same.”

So this election is important to Kim, because it is important to Lee. Although Kim has had some struggles in his life, it was his relationship with Lee that really made the November election a hot button topic for him. Although issues like tax cuts and government spending as well as the economy are important to him, he’s more interested in the safety of his friend in the Armed Forces.

The story of Kim may seem familiar. As this election embarks the start of a new president, Kim hopes that it’ll also bring an end to this war.