None of the Above
As it stands, I no intention of voting during the next election. I live in Tokyo and could vote by absentee ballot if I wanted. I am not abstaining because I'm an expatriate; I still care about what happens to the United States since America's actions affect the entire world.
I am not voting because there is no one who deserves my vote. Of the three viable candidates, I had considered Obama and McCain, but I have decided that neither of them is fit to be president. Obama's recent remarks on small town voters, while accurate, revealed how basically marxist his philosophy is. McCain is no better, with every major congressional achievement of his being anathema to my beliefs about the role of government.
I liked the fact that McCain didn't tow the republican party line, that he spoke out against torture, that his rhetoric on spending is sound, and that he at least tries to take the high road and avoid negative campaigning. I can respect McCain, but I can't say that he would make a good president because I don't trust his ideas. He might be a good leader, but I don't want to follow him wherever he's going.
Obama is a good orator, a very positive personality, and would do wonders to improve America's reputation were he president, at least superficially. The problem is that, were I to support him, my reasons would be a series of guesses, hopes, and predictions, not an honest belief in his platform.
Though it looks like her chances of getting the nomination are slim anyway, Hillary is beyond any kind of consideration for me. It is difficult for me to imagine something of which I would be more ashamed than seeing her represent the free world in the same line as Roosevelt, Kennedy, and Reagan.
I don't see Obama or McCain doing much good for the country except out of coincidence, circumstance, expediency, or accident. I will not help either of them.
I recognize that not voting is seen as cowardly by some. There are those who say we just have to suck it up, take responsibility, and at least help the less awful candidate. I say that's hogwash. The value of voting is a superstition. None of the fundamental problems of government can be solved by casting a ballot. What we need to do is reform state constitutions and drastically shrink the federal government. We need to start caring about our rights again, and we need to become educated; We need to fix our culture.
There will always be enough dishonest politicians and manipulative advertising to swing an election. Elections are the fruits of our culture and educational systems; there is a reason why George Bush won twice. New politicians tend to create more problems than they solve, with precious few exceptions. It used to be that the Constitution protected our rights, but now that we have ignored it, every election cycle becomes a game of Russian-roulette with our liberties.
The fact is, too many of our rights are dependent on voting. Your right to life and liberty, the draft, the most fundamental violation of one's right to life, abortion, free speech and campaign finance and the FCC - all of these are at the whim of whoever is in office. Education is completely politicized, as are most of our property rights, healthcare choices, retirement savings, housing contracts, student loans, government rebates, farm subsidies and the cost of food, tariffs and free trade, and on and on and on. Most people have no concept of how unfree they are because they've been educated to take authority for granted, to see their own free, self-guided action and values as secondary to supporting society and keeping up with the Joneses. They don't care that they slave away a third of the year, a third of their lives just paying for this useless leviathan of a government that screams that it needs more of our money to get out of the debt it has created in our names.
If I vote for Obama, he will attack my property rights, if I vote for McCain, he will attack free speech, liberty, and my right to life by making war. I can not help either of them to do that. Voting is not the answer.
I do my part and make my happiness by writing and teaching. If my work can open a few people's eyes, perhaps they can teach others. With all the problems in the world today, this country doesn't just need new leadership. Leadership is what got us into this mess. What we need is a revolution, and revolutions don't start from government. They start inside each of us.
Current Mood:
I am not voting because there is no one who deserves my vote. Of the three viable candidates, I had considered Obama and McCain, but I have decided that neither of them is fit to be president. Obama's recent remarks on small town voters, while accurate, revealed how basically marxist his philosophy is. McCain is no better, with every major congressional achievement of his being anathema to my beliefs about the role of government.
I liked the fact that McCain didn't tow the republican party line, that he spoke out against torture, that his rhetoric on spending is sound, and that he at least tries to take the high road and avoid negative campaigning. I can respect McCain, but I can't say that he would make a good president because I don't trust his ideas. He might be a good leader, but I don't want to follow him wherever he's going.
Obama is a good orator, a very positive personality, and would do wonders to improve America's reputation were he president, at least superficially. The problem is that, were I to support him, my reasons would be a series of guesses, hopes, and predictions, not an honest belief in his platform.
Though it looks like her chances of getting the nomination are slim anyway, Hillary is beyond any kind of consideration for me. It is difficult for me to imagine something of which I would be more ashamed than seeing her represent the free world in the same line as Roosevelt, Kennedy, and Reagan.
I don't see Obama or McCain doing much good for the country except out of coincidence, circumstance, expediency, or accident. I will not help either of them.
I recognize that not voting is seen as cowardly by some. There are those who say we just have to suck it up, take responsibility, and at least help the less awful candidate. I say that's hogwash. The value of voting is a superstition. None of the fundamental problems of government can be solved by casting a ballot. What we need to do is reform state constitutions and drastically shrink the federal government. We need to start caring about our rights again, and we need to become educated; We need to fix our culture.
There will always be enough dishonest politicians and manipulative advertising to swing an election. Elections are the fruits of our culture and educational systems; there is a reason why George Bush won twice. New politicians tend to create more problems than they solve, with precious few exceptions. It used to be that the Constitution protected our rights, but now that we have ignored it, every election cycle becomes a game of Russian-roulette with our liberties.
The fact is, too many of our rights are dependent on voting. Your right to life and liberty, the draft, the most fundamental violation of one's right to life, abortion, free speech and campaign finance and the FCC - all of these are at the whim of whoever is in office. Education is completely politicized, as are most of our property rights, healthcare choices, retirement savings, housing contracts, student loans, government rebates, farm subsidies and the cost of food, tariffs and free trade, and on and on and on. Most people have no concept of how unfree they are because they've been educated to take authority for granted, to see their own free, self-guided action and values as secondary to supporting society and keeping up with the Joneses. They don't care that they slave away a third of the year, a third of their lives just paying for this useless leviathan of a government that screams that it needs more of our money to get out of the debt it has created in our names.
If I vote for Obama, he will attack my property rights, if I vote for McCain, he will attack free speech, liberty, and my right to life by making war. I can not help either of them to do that. Voting is not the answer.
I do my part and make my happiness by writing and teaching. If my work can open a few people's eyes, perhaps they can teach others. With all the problems in the world today, this country doesn't just need new leadership. Leadership is what got us into this mess. What we need is a revolution, and revolutions don't start from government. They start inside each of us.
Current Mood:
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