Considering Abstention

[besserby]

I just saw the Obama "Hope" poster today and, although it frightens me, I'm seriously considering not voting for a major candidate for President

Comments

[spookygrlfriend]

I've heard a lot of my friends echoing that sentiment over the years, about how they just don't like any candidates, don't want to vote for the lesser of two evils, etc...but the thing is...it's politics. Politics is a yucky nasty world where to even get to the point where you can run for president, you are already wholly ingrained in the system. It's like voting for your favorite advertising executive. Or America's Next Top Model. They're all dipshits, and you can pick your favorite dipshit to win, but that doesn't make them less dipshitty

[eavanmoore]

At this point, my vote is not about my faith in the candidate but my wish to avoid the descent into further deprivation and warfare that a McCain presidency would ensure. The primaries are over, and it's a close race between two people now. Who cares if Obama isn't going to bring change? McCain will, and it's not a change I want to see.

[besserby]

Deprivation? Seems like an overly harsh word.

Anyway, I'm not convinced that McCain = Bush. Sure they're from the same party but they had some pretty heated debates during the Republican primaries in 2000. I'm tired of political discussions that focus not on the positive aspects of a favored candidate but on the supposed negative qualities of the opponent.

[sweetsies]

Don't think she made any statement about Bush = McCain. In fact, I'm pretty sure she said he's not Bush: he's scarier.

[besserby]

Good catch. My apologies. In what way is McCain scarier?

[sweetsies]

I'm voting Obama because he makes my little heart go pitter-pat, and while that's not a logical reason to vote for someone, it's the only reason most people vote for someone at all. Pitter-pat. You just have a little feeling about them. They've wooed you with their rhetoric, or rather their heartfelt sentimental stories that do not contain logical rhetoric but are the essence of rhetoric in their diversionary excellence. Pitter-fucking-pat.

And besides, McCain's not hot enough for me.

Go local. The politicos are less squeazy there.

[besserby]

Agreed on the local politicos (although we get some pretty icky ones down here occasionally.)

I guess I agree with you on the "pitter-pat" agreement too. I really wish elections centered around facts, logic, and voting history but they really don't. They're about emotions to a large extent, just like marketing campaigns.

I really would love to have some reason to vote for Obama that I could justify logically but I have yet to find it. I'll keep trying because the alternative would be to throw away my vote on my friend Dr. John A. Zoidberg.

[codingparadox]

Adam, Adam. While I love thee, I'm going to have to kinda echo what spookygrl said, but I want to emphasize it even stronger

[besserby]

"He wants into office and then if it happens he'll sit down and figure out what to do if he gets there and it will likely be whatever will likely place him there for term #2."

I don't agree with that statement being any more true for McCain than for Obama. At least McCain agreed to limit his campaign spending (well, Obama did too but then decided not to go through with it.) I really think both candidates believe so much in the superiority of their administration, if elected, that they'll say and do anything to get elected

[besserby]

An alternate view on whether reneging on his promise of public campaign finance affects Obama's message... http://thecurrent.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/06/public-financing.php

[codingparadox]

Welcome to the reality of the United States. It's full of stupid people. Yes, if you're registered to vote in California, it's a given. Yes, if everyone thought that way things would be different. No, they don't think that way