Posting Frenzy!

[lane]

I wasn't going to say anything, but damnit people (and this isn't necessarily directed at my friends list, just the abundantly liberal LJ community as a whole -- as if they all read my LJ :P), not EVERYONE voted for Obama. I know a lot of you blue-staters would like to sometimes think that the WHOLE world agreed with your choice, but you need to

Comments

[thejimi]

I think most people are referring to the electoral college, in which Obama dominated McCain. Whether or not one consider's the electoral college to be a good system is another issue (personally I hate it). The popular vote was considerably closer, but not nearly as close as the past two elections if I remember correctly.

I voted for Obama and this is the first election where I've really felt strongly towards a candidate; in other elections I either thought the options were crap or I was just too young to pay any attention to any of it. With respect, I think that the fact that I got what I wanted and what I think this country needed (my opinion of course!) entitles me to be happy and not care what naysayers may think on the issue, for the moment anyways. :P

I agree that it wasn't really a landslide though. People's views of what a landslide is probably is just skewed because of how close these last couple elections have been.

[lane]

Well, I'm not convinced Obama is the change America needs. Socially and economically I'm a bit concerned. We'll see what happens, I guess.

[thejimi]

Yeah, can I understand that. Most conservatives should feel that way because they have a completely different view of what is good for the economy and social fiber of America.

I agree with you about wanting to have more than two parties to choose from, by the way. >_>

[lane]

Yeah, I'm more of a Libertarian, I guess, from what little I've read about it. I should probably read more before labeling myself. :P Regardless, I still consider myself a moderate conservative.

People think it's ironic I'm against social programs given that I'm so poor, but people abuse the system* and Obama seems to have led a lot of people to believe that he'll be their Robin Hood. Plus, more taxes of any kind doesn't really help anybody. I wish they'd do away with income tax altogether and do a flat sales tax, but I wish a lot of things that don't happen. :(

* Plus, the government sucks regulating their aid. More money per child is just encouraging people who can't afford them to have more children while childless people get no aid at all, which is just BS.

[anonymous]

Of course you could also say Bush won by a much slimmer margin in 2004 and 2000 (wherein 2000 is still debatable thanks to hanging chads etc.)

So I'd say both sides ought to shut up. There are always people who voted the other way. :)

[lane]

Assuming Anonymous person is reading this. :P

Yeah, that's why I said I felt bad the past 3 elections because either way half the country is upset by the outcome.

[anonymous]

Yup, so true. Drives me crazy too. But I guess it is just part of how people will react no matter who wins.

[anonymous]

I'm anonymous, mwahahaha!

[shirofan]

In any such contest the language used by the winning side tends to suggest that their candidate was the only real choice, usually by the omission of the word most.

As an outsider there are two things that spring to mind about the US election: firstly regardless of result the voter turnout figures have bucked the trend of most western countries in actually going up to a somewhat representative level.

And secondly, that it is over. Not to sound condescending but do you really need to take so long to pick? In the UK no campaigning can be done until an election is called. and after it has been it has to be completed within six weeks. Based on this campaign the whole process will be starting again in early 2010

As for a third party, well the US system requires just two parties taking the vast majority of votes: the electoral college system in particular would have real problems if a third party came and took out some of the larger voting blocks, or worse if several unaffiliated ones did so across the whole.

[lane]

Well, a lot of people feel the electoral college should be done away with an elections should be based on popular vote. I just think that the US really needs a grey option instead of always black or white. I feel it's the main cause behind the country being so divided.

Barring that happening, they should decide to make things like gay marriage and abortion state issues and not part of the presidential platform. I'm tired of people voting for one issue and not the party's policies as a whole and likewise I'm tired of having to vote for things I don't actually support in order to get things I do.

It's a long campaigning process as far as I know. Each party has candidates who run in the primaries, so those candidates have to go out and try and get the vote from their party affiliates. Once a winner is determined then they have to convince the country as a whole to vote for them. I don't think a candidate would have enough time to give a speech in all the major US cities in just 6 weeks.

[shirofan]

I don't expect the US to be able to clear itself in six weeks; the problem I have is that for most of the last two years or so the office of the incumbent president has more or less been sidelined by the race to find his successor.

This tends to weaken any bargaining position as people end up with the view that if they cannot get what they want from this president then they should delay things and try the next one.

To some extent this applies to all countries with a reselected power base, but the fact that the person in power will not be there for too much longer is brought to the fore in America much earlier than anywhere else.