Last week my state held its primary. For the first time in probably two or three decades, neither my wife nor I cast a ballot. Come Election Day in November, I'm not sure this will change. About the ONLY reason we might cast a vote here or there will be due to ballot initiatives. However, unless there is an initiative that we feel is particularly draconian, we most likely won't cast ballots at all!!
Both of us independently have arrived at that point in life in which we simply don't see what difference it makes anymore. Over the past 8 years or so, our lives have not changed significantly whether a Republican or a Democrat occupies the White House and it hasn't seemed to matter who we send to Washington D.C. or our state capitol. Neither mainstream party represents our needs and both are beholden to the same corporate interests.
There was a time when we would proudly cast our votes of so-called third parties. For example, we both cast our votes for Ralph Nader for president in 2000. While it felt good to vote for candidates who stood for what we believe in, the unfortunate truth is that like almost every other vote cast, they amount to nothing more than wasted votes. The candidates we supported had ZERO chance of winning and, more sadly, ZERO chance of impacting the final outcome in any way, shape or form.
I know how the American ideal goes. We're instructed from birth that voting is our duty as citizens. It is our way of making our voices heard. It is our way of shaping the direction the country will head.
Horse hockey!!
It's nothing more than an elaborate dog and pony show. Even worse, it's a very expensive one at that!
While local and state government's are awash in red ink, federal candidates so far this year have raised $1.2 BILLION, most of this amount for the primary season alone. The real campaign season is getting underway now. By the time we hit November, we could be looking at $5 - $10 BILLION or more in money raised and spent for federal, state, county and local races PLUS the amount of money government will have to spend to conduct the elections themselves.
And how will this money be spent? On legions of negative and hateful ads that attempt to smear one opponent worse than the other. On exorbitant salaries for the people who create the negative and hateful ad campaigns. On lavish dinners and other perks for candidates and key staff people. On travel. On junkets. And the list goes on and on and on...
While people are struggling to find work and/or keeping food on the table or a roof over their heads, far too many political candidates will be living it up. All this for a shot to garner a position in which to keep the money flowing to the wealthy elite, while the rest of the country goes down in flames.
I've simply decided I will no longer abet such a system.
Both of us independently have arrived at that point in life in which we simply don't see what difference it makes anymore. Over the past 8 years or so, our lives have not changed significantly whether a Republican or a Democrat occupies the White House and it hasn't seemed to matter who we send to Washington D.C. or our state capitol. Neither mainstream party represents our needs and both are beholden to the same corporate interests.
There was a time when we would proudly cast our votes of so-called third parties. For example, we both cast our votes for Ralph Nader for president in 2000. While it felt good to vote for candidates who stood for what we believe in, the unfortunate truth is that like almost every other vote cast, they amount to nothing more than wasted votes. The candidates we supported had ZERO chance of winning and, more sadly, ZERO chance of impacting the final outcome in any way, shape or form.
I know how the American ideal goes. We're instructed from birth that voting is our duty as citizens. It is our way of making our voices heard. It is our way of shaping the direction the country will head.
Horse hockey!!
It's nothing more than an elaborate dog and pony show. Even worse, it's a very expensive one at that!
While local and state government's are awash in red ink, federal candidates so far this year have raised $1.2 BILLION, most of this amount for the primary season alone. The real campaign season is getting underway now. By the time we hit November, we could be looking at $5 - $10 BILLION or more in money raised and spent for federal, state, county and local races PLUS the amount of money government will have to spend to conduct the elections themselves.
And how will this money be spent? On legions of negative and hateful ads that attempt to smear one opponent worse than the other. On exorbitant salaries for the people who create the negative and hateful ad campaigns. On lavish dinners and other perks for candidates and key staff people. On travel. On junkets. And the list goes on and on and on...
While people are struggling to find work and/or keeping food on the table or a roof over their heads, far too many political candidates will be living it up. All this for a shot to garner a position in which to keep the money flowing to the wealthy elite, while the rest of the country goes down in flames.
I've simply decided I will no longer abet such a system.
my husband stopped voting a while ago. i still put in my vote for a 3rd party candidate even though i know it'll never win.
ReplyDeletestill, i vote because i hate giving up. i can't help but think that there are many people out there who have let the constant badgering of politicians drive them away from politics altogether, and if those people voted anyway, maybe it would count for something.
most likely it wouldn't. but, i still try.
I would caution you not to conflate not voting with giving up. I, for one, have decided not to participate in a worthless exercise and instead work on something I can change -- me.
ReplyDeleteI no longer vote and have not for years. I have come to same conclusion that it makes little difference in my life. I just do not care anymore. Politicians are merely salesmen and I do not care for pushy, lying, salesmen who will say anything to get sell their product (themselves in this case) and further their career. Their world is Mars, mine is Jupiter and we have little in common other than sharing the universe. I believe many others feel a disconnect with government as well, but there are still plenty of naive individuals standing by the roads, waving signs, and leading the cheers to keep the current system afloat unfortunately.
ReplyDeleteSir, I must disagree. While I am with you as far as the Democrats and Republicans being beholden to the same interests, the fact that neither party truly represents the people is only because the people are all apathetic to the political game! We vote at the lowest rates of the Western world. If we all got up and voted at 80, 90, my god, 100%! Well, they'd take notice, and our country could be ours again.
ReplyDeletePoliticians AS THINGS ARE are merely salesmen, or frontmen for a shadow government... whatever. But this can be changed. Voting is vital to democracy. If we all used our voice, they couldn't help but be forced to listen. Right now, they only hear the corporate voice, the military voice, the money voice. But only because we're sitting on the sidelines hardly making a sound, muttering to one another under our breaths about the shitty government but never actually standing up and getting in the game.
Brandon,
ReplyDeleteI was involved with two different third parties for nearly 15 years. What you say is true, but ONLY theoretically.
The practical reality is that corporate interests control the media and the political system is rigged to marginalize candidates that don't serve corporate interests.
Look at what happened to Democratic candidates like Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinnich. Despite the fact that neither is a true lefty, both were undermined by the Dem Party establishment to the point that their campaigns became irrelevant quickly.
A true populist candidate simply wouldn't have the funds to duke it out with the Republicrats and, even if they somehow made some inroads, both mainstream parties and the media would sling such mud that their campaign would be doomed.