"Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny." -- unknown

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results - Albert Einstein

voting
October 16, 2005 - 12:31 pm

I don't care for Bush. I didn't vote for him. I didn't vote for Kerry either. I voted for a 3rd party.. a party that actaully matches what I believe best.

You may think I wasted my vote.. I say, I did EXACTLY what I should do in a democracy, which is a hell of alot more than most people do.

Everywhere I go, people bash Bush. I've lived in a solidly "red" state and currently in "blue" state, but it's the same.. everyone bashes Bush. He stole this or that.. whatever. Get your head out of the past, come up with a plan for what you can change.

The focus of all those anti-Bush comments is on.. a chewbacca argument at best (or is it strawman? whatever. It's pointless crying). What people should focus on (and what should matter a heck of alot more in our supposed democracy) is that only 58% of those registered to vote did vote.

Think about that -- just 58%.

We tout ourselves as the world's leading democracy, but 41% of the people who can vote, don't? That's what should be a concern for folks.. not who might run -- but who will actually vote!

Bush got 51% of the 58% that did vote. That's about 29% of the people who can vote did vote fo Bush -- that's about 62 million votes out of a possible 215 million people over 18 in the country. Our leader is elected with not even 1/3 support of the people. Staggering.

I'm no fan of Bush, but I have a sneaking suspsion that a great many people who bash him and rant about how messed up the country is because of him.. didn't vote.

Find a party, any party and vote.

How diffrent do you think the country could be if the person elected president actaully had support from a true majority if the poeple?

Sure a pipedream that 100% of the people would vote.. but still, shouldn't that be the goal?

Articles I read now are about how it will be Hillary vs Condi in 2008. I don't care for Hillary at all.. and I'm not sure about Condi.

The only reason I like the idea is I think it might polarize people enought to vote. I'm sure, as sad as it is, a movement for some male canidate would start too... and we might have our first true 3 way election opportunity.

On the downside.. all the innuendo we'd have to endure.. be it just woman on woman or a 3 way race. I shudder to think.

Interestingly, I actaully find.. that this is an issue I feel rather passionate about -- "How to get more people to vote?"

Again, I don't give a rats ass who it's for, as long as you do. Perhaps there should be a button that says "None of the Above" - that'd be eyeopening... if Bush "won" with 29% of the possible vote and "None of the Above" got more?

Perhaps our parties would actaully reform themselves and pay more attention to what the people want.. and not just how to keep power (though, by paying attention, they'd keep power - a nice twist eh?).