Vote Your Conscience...Please!
November 4th is upon us. Please vote. If you have any reasons to vote for your Presidential candidate tell us here. In the meantime my plea is that everyone vote your conscience, everyone.
I am struggling hard to know whom to vote for. I live in Indiana. My vote may finally count this time and I don't like anyone. Do I "waste my vote" by voting for Bob Barr the Libertarian candidate, or Ralph Nadar? Unless you're paying attention you probably didn't even know there are other choices. Does voting for these other candidates really send a message?
Damn political parties. They are almost always extremist. Damn party politics. The government cannot, and I mean cannot, keep spending my (our) money like it does. The local Libertarian candidate said it plainly today: "We cannot afford it." He made a great deal of sense to me. Again: "We cannot afford it."
Since the balance of power has been extremist in both dominating political parties our only hope may be to reign them in with another extremist party until the third party helps brings spending in check, and spending will not be brought into check when we vote for politicians who compete with other politicians to buy our votes with things like earmarks and special interest projects. Our district Congressman, Mark Souder, a pragmatist, said he doesn't like doing it but when the other Senators are taking away Indiana's tax money for their special projects, he needs to get in there and fight for Indiana. Go figure.
We are in a financial crisis, an energy crisis, a health-care crisis, an infrastructure crisis, and a crisis in Iraq. The way this election is being treated it's like my former professor Strauss would say: "They think rearranging chairs on the Titanic will help." It won't. Don't bet your ass on it. I have seen politicians come and go. They always make promises, and most of them lie. That's the nature of the political beast. Neither Obama nor McCain can deliver what they have promised. Mark my words. They cannot do it. Even if they try, when Congress doesn't go fully along with what they hope to achieve they will blame Congress. That's what will happen. Again, mark my words. That has always been the excuse for most any President who doesn't deliver on his promises. So on the campaign trail they can promise us the sky! Just don't say what President Bush (Senior) said. He said, "No new taxes" and then later signed a bill with additional taxes. His hand got caught in the cookie jar.
Is it truly a wasted vote to vote for a candidate who has little or no hope to win an election? Well, not if enough people vote their conscience. Is it possible to get people to vote their consciences? I don't know. But that's my plea. Don't vote for what the political parties throw out on the table, as if those are your only two choices. Of course you may want to. But vote your conscience. Our biggest problem is spending. We are spending money like there's no tommorrow. If we continue to do this there will be no tommorrow. Send them all a message loud and clear.
I am struggling hard to know whom to vote for. I live in Indiana. My vote may finally count this time and I don't like anyone. Do I "waste my vote" by voting for Bob Barr the Libertarian candidate, or Ralph Nadar? Unless you're paying attention you probably didn't even know there are other choices. Does voting for these other candidates really send a message?
Damn political parties. They are almost always extremist. Damn party politics. The government cannot, and I mean cannot, keep spending my (our) money like it does. The local Libertarian candidate said it plainly today: "We cannot afford it." He made a great deal of sense to me. Again: "We cannot afford it."
Since the balance of power has been extremist in both dominating political parties our only hope may be to reign them in with another extremist party until the third party helps brings spending in check, and spending will not be brought into check when we vote for politicians who compete with other politicians to buy our votes with things like earmarks and special interest projects. Our district Congressman, Mark Souder, a pragmatist, said he doesn't like doing it but when the other Senators are taking away Indiana's tax money for their special projects, he needs to get in there and fight for Indiana. Go figure.
We are in a financial crisis, an energy crisis, a health-care crisis, an infrastructure crisis, and a crisis in Iraq. The way this election is being treated it's like my former professor Strauss would say: "They think rearranging chairs on the Titanic will help." It won't. Don't bet your ass on it. I have seen politicians come and go. They always make promises, and most of them lie. That's the nature of the political beast. Neither Obama nor McCain can deliver what they have promised. Mark my words. They cannot do it. Even if they try, when Congress doesn't go fully along with what they hope to achieve they will blame Congress. That's what will happen. Again, mark my words. That has always been the excuse for most any President who doesn't deliver on his promises. So on the campaign trail they can promise us the sky! Just don't say what President Bush (Senior) said. He said, "No new taxes" and then later signed a bill with additional taxes. His hand got caught in the cookie jar.
Is it truly a wasted vote to vote for a candidate who has little or no hope to win an election? Well, not if enough people vote their conscience. Is it possible to get people to vote their consciences? I don't know. But that's my plea. Don't vote for what the political parties throw out on the table, as if those are your only two choices. Of course you may want to. But vote your conscience. Our biggest problem is spending. We are spending money like there's no tommorrow. If we continue to do this there will be no tommorrow. Send them all a message loud and clear.