[None of the Above raw #48]

Raw footage of Gene Tencza for "None of the Above," a documentary that follows a number of non-voters during the 1996 presidential election and investigates the reasons why they don't vote. Tape 2 of 4 for Tencza.

00:00Copy video clip URL Tencza talks about one of his oldest tractors–how the fuel works and how to turn it off.  He continues the tour of his property, highlighting his “tractor graveyard,” the stone walls, brooks, and a nearby beaver dam.

20:00Copy video clip URL Tencza starts to talk about another tractor, and then discusses the phenomenon of collecting tractors as a way of preserving history.

25:25Copy video clip URL John Callaway sits down with Tencza in the barn and they begin a conversation. Tencza says that things could be better, but calls this the “greatest country in the world.” He says he fears the national debt and a financial collapse. He says that politicians have overspent and should be required to balance the budget. He also speaks about social programs and cutting out the waste.

37:30Copy video clip URL Tencza says that local government is pretty good because people can’t get away with things as much as they can at the state level. He goes on to speak of his new love of history and how it has impacted his life in a real way.

40:25Copy video clip URL Tencza equates civic responsibility with voting, so he claims that he doesn’t use his civic responsibility. He says he doesn’t vote because he feels that the system of checks and balances is working so well, that he doesn’t need to influence it in any way. He says that he is interested in election results, but that he is not interested in voting. He claims that he has never registered to vote and doesn’t feel the need to since the system works. He claims that he is not going to make any difference with his vote. He also claims that even though many politicians have good intentions, they ultimately are not able to do the right thing.

47:25Copy video clip URL Despite Callaway’s questions about local politics and relevant issues, Tencza claims that he still would not vote even on specifically local issues. He speaks about his freedom to choose not to vote being as important as the choice to exercise the right to vote.

52:15Copy video clip URL Tencza offers a biography of his life.

1:02:10Copy video clip URL Tencza agrees that his hobby of collecting tractors is a rich part of civic life because it’s a way of preserving history.

1:02:51Copy video clip URL End of tape.