Recent Reflections

Someone, please. Make skins for Google Chrome. please. It is so ugly.

I need to register to vote, although I doubt I will actually vote. I am not very impressed with McCain or Obama. I could always go Nader…
People keep telling me, "There are more than two candidates. Vote for one of the others." And until recently I thought, seriously, what are the chances of one of them actually getting elected? The Republican/Democrat juggernaut has a monopoly on the entire political system, not only through the media, but also through laws that they have passed giving them special priority and power to defend their position. I brought this up with my government class professor, Dr. Shelton, and he made me realize why it really is important. He used Ross Perot as an example: Perot’s big issue was getting a hold on government spending. Perot did not win, did not have the support of the majority, but the issue of government spending became an issue that politicians had to address because Perot had brought it to the attention of the populace. In order to steal that attention back and keep the focus on themselves, they were forced to address national spending.

Dr. Shelton told me that although some may call him naïve, he believes that every vote sends a message, and I tend to agree. Even if I don’t get my way by my favored candidate being elected, if people see that a third party candidate received support, they will take notice. If the politicians see that a third party candidate is “stealing” their votes, they will take notice. Again, this may not be everything that I wanted, which in my case is the integration of more parties into the political process and a decrease in the R/D monopoly, but it is a start. I’m starting to realize that I can’t have my cake, eat it too and then go eat someone else’s cake. There is a line where my agenda meets another’s and both must be considered thoroughly before action is taken.

My point is, don’t be pressured into voting for a candidate that you don’t agree with because of a lack of alternatives. Dr. Shelton told me voters, essentially, get discouraged at the power the two main parties hold in the government and therefore feel powerless, as I did, but that doesn’t mean that we are.

Also, as of right now, Bob Barr has my stamp of approval as the Libertarian candidate. But that could change.