Voting your conscience

[unixronin]

cymrullewes posted on why she's writing in her vote for President this election.  And you know what?  I'm there too.  Because you have to start voting your conscience sooner or later if you ever want things to improve.

I know lots of people who are dissatisfied with the offerings of the two major political parties.  Very few of them are voting their consciences this election.  "Because", most of them say, "the $XXX candidate is just so awful that it's vital to vote $YYY this time around to keep him out.  I can vote my conscience next election; there's plenty of time."

But that's what almost every one of them said in 2004.

And in 2000.

And in 1996.

And in 1992.

Do we begin to see a pattern here?

I'll put it as plainly as I can:

As long as they can keep you voting for "the lesser evil", they can keep you voting for things to get worse and worse and worse.  Because a vote for the lesser evil is still a vote for evil.

It's a vote that says you're OK with things getting worse every year, so long as it's your party doing it, and so long as they do it mostly to the other guy.  Then when the other party gets in power and does unto you in turn, because you're "the other guy" now, you'll whine about how unfair it is that your rights are being trampled.  Just like your party trampled the rights of "those other people" for the previous four years.

But there are no "other people".  There's just US.  We're all "us".  And we all have to stand up for each others' rights, if we expect anyone to show any respect for our own.

You want change?  Vote for change.  Not for the status quo with a shiny new face up front and a promise that it'll be better this time, and he'll stop beating you this time, honest, it was an accident and he meant to hit "those other people".

American voters are in an abusive relationship with their major political parties.  And it's time to stand up for yourselves and throw the bastards out.

Comments

Sadly...

[dakiwiboid.livejournal.com]

We have people who make up their minds in line in this state, believe it on not. I've met them. Sometimes they bring the newspaper with the voter's guide along and seemingly read it for the very first time in the voting booth, which is horrifying. I hope nobody does it this time, because our ballot will be very, very long as it is.

I just enforce the law as it stands, alas. One nice thing about the law as it's written is that it gives me an excuse to get candidates who vote in our polling place out the door fast after they vote. It's not legal for them to stand around and gossip with voters in line or election workers, because that constitutes electioneering. I really agree with that. Seeing the candidate hanging around in the polling place is not a good thing. It might change the weak minds. Sigh. Let 'em hang around outside the "safe zone" outside all they want in the lousy Election Day weather, but not in my polling place.