NONE OF THE ABOVE
This article will probably be a great waste of my time, because the ones who read it and understand will not be the ones who need to read it.
Wikipedia says that the reason for voting
In a democracy, voting commonly implies election, i.e. a way for an electorate to select among candidates for office. In politics voting is the method by which the electorate of a democracy appoints representatives in its government.
I have read a lot of comments lately about what people will do when their candidate doesn’t appear on the ballot for the General Election in the US. Some have said they will not vote. Some have said they will vote for someone else “to send a message”. Some have said their (political) party has been hijacked. Some will vote a straight party ticket without knowing what the platform is or what the candidates stand for. Some will vote based on race, age, gender or appearance (these are the HOPEfull voters).
To these malcontents I say this, “Get over it!” If you don’t vote at all then you cede all rights to complain. Unless you vote you really haven’t earned the right to protest. As for those that talk about jumping parties, I say go ahead, but know what you are really doing. Being an active political party member does not mean that you support the candidate, it means you support the party platform.
The party platform and its planks are not determined by the candidate but by the active party members in committees, in caucuses and at the grass roots level. If you don’t agree with a candidates planks then voice your opinion at party meetings, in party newsletters, blogs and via your donations of time and money. Work to get the platform and/or planks changed!
Wikipedia defines,
A party platform, also known as a manifesto, as a list of the principles, which a political party supports in order to appeal to the general public for the purpose of having said party’s candidates voted into office. This often takes the form of a list of support for, or opposition to, controversial topics. Individual topics are often called planks of the platform.
Under the provisions of the Constitution the act of voting is a right, but it is also the privilege of all citizens of voting age [The Twenty-sixth Amendment prohibits the federal government and the states from forbidding any citizen of age 18 or greater to vote simply because of their age. Some states do not allow convicted felons to vote (either for life, or just while they are in prison).]
Vote, but make it an informed vote. Know what and whom you are voting for.
For those interesting in a more scholarly study about informed voting I suggest Lupia and McCubbins: The Democratic Dilemma, a summary of which is here.
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Well said, Tex. I think too many of us tend to get interested in politics only when there is a national election coming up…then we get all mad throw temper tantrums when the political landscape does not represent our views. Why should it?
If we don’t like our choices in the 2008 election…now is the time to start working on making sure we have better choices (nationally) in 2012, etc.. We can do that by becoming active in the political process at the local level.
Remember, the national politicians didn’t start their political careers by running for president. They started locally.
Interesting piece. One problem though. The Republican Party does not support the Republican platform and hasn’t for some time. What does it mean to say you support the platform of a party that doesn’t support its own platform?
I’m one of the malcontents. I certainly will vote but I’ve said a number of times that I won’t vote for John McCain. In the end I could end up choking back the vomit and voting for him but that’s not my plan. Your argument implies I am part of the problem. I think the opposite is true. I think those who hold their noses every election and vote for the least offensive candidate help perpetuate the problem. I’m sick of the lessor of two evils personally.
The reality is I’m not sure what I’ll do come November. The only thing I am sure about is that I WILL vote for someone. Judicial nominations may force me to vote for McCain but if I do, I have no illusions that I’ll be making the world a better place or even that the country will be better off. I believe that a McCain presidency will further erode the Republican Party’s commitment to conservatism.
Ron, the Republican Platform was last updated in 2004, the new one is still being drafted in State meetings. I don’t agree with the procedure and have recommended a convention to approve a platform two years before the General Election and that we choose candidates who agree with that platform, the individual planks for the platform then could be ironed out at the nominating conventions. But this change has to start at the bottom and the working toward that goal should have started before the primaries.This year I am afraid there will be a lot of people voting against candidates instead of for a candidate. This is the reason delegates and State Executive Committes are so important and these people are elected by grass roots and not on any public ballot. Don’t wait until the Nov Election get involved now. I apologize if I implied you are part of the problem. The problem is the uninformed who make those statements. I am not telling people how to vote, just to know what they are voting for. By listing the candidates and what they are for (not what they say they are for but a record of voting and a review of who is supporting them, following the money trail, checking out advisors, etc) then seeing which candidate most closely matches your list of prerequisites. It is doubtful that any candidate will ever truely meet all requirements for everyone within a political party but the one who comes closest. Face it politicans are very flexible when it comes to voters, if enough voters want a platform or plank they can shift a candidate’s viewpoint, but the voters have to speak up and demand to be heard. Obama has come a long way on rhetoric with no real plan for anything, people are voting for him and have no real idea of what he plans to do.
Given our choices this election, “None Of The Above” would be a great write in, if enough did it.
In the interim, I am working to get more conservatives elected at lower level government to work from the bottom up like the libs did to take back America for Patriotic people who actually love America.
Dear Tex, ya right. It’s a tragedy of faux rebellion to not vote. In Australia voting is compulsory. Oddly the electorate can seem to divide a bit like America. It’s better if it’s compulsory as taxes and death are. Then perhaps there is not the focus on getting people to vote in the first place, but who to vote for and why. Still, the people can be misinformed, eh? Another benefit of compulsory voting is that people cannot be so easily coercerced or intimidated into not voting.
Democracy eh? Those who benefit most from it often think they wouldn’t miss it cos it’s a joke to them. The over 200 year old Democracy of the US, the 100 year odd one in Australia and the even older one of Britain, outrank every other state that has never had, it or could not maintain it due entirely to their internal weakness.
Colonel Neville.