So it appears that more States are in play now. I'm freakin out. My voting philosophy in presidential races is to vote libertarian (since I'm in a heave blue state) but now that Michigan is a toss up I will probably have to vote Romney.
Anyway That's that. Check it out in the source link below.
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I am a little luckier. If Obama does not carry Minnesota, he has no chance, so I am voting for Johnson.
ReplyDeleteThe calculus may be the same for that place I don't give a damn for, because I am from O-hi-o.
Voting for Johnson is like taking your ballot, lighting it on fire, and tossing it into the wind. In other words, it doesn't count. Making some kind of "point" with your vote doesn't accomplish anything, it just helps Obama.
DeleteNow, if we used a Jefferson voting system or ranked voting, then we could vote for third party and such candidates, and still be assured that our vote doesn't help the Democrat, because our fall-back vote could count for the Republican. (Think Heisman voting)
But in our current presidential voting system, it will always be the Republican vs the Democrat and voting third party for president is a waste.
This can be changed at the state level, by the way. The states decide how to award electoral votes, not the federal government. But pretty much every state does it the same way now. Some argue it is a good thing (and many European nations are examples of this), while others argue that we need more parties.
the problem with other parties is they are just special interest groups for either republicans or democrats.
ReplyDeletelook at the green party, or the us tax payer party. all they are is just far right or left versions of democrats and republicans.
I would vote libertarian only if my state had no chance. I voted bob barr in
08 because my state was going obama no matter what. simply put, my vote didn't count at all.
now I voted properly in all other portions of the election, just not for president, and if this year really is a toss up romney gets my vote.
There are a lot of people that vote that way, and the problem with it is, they are considering whether their state is a "toss up" based on perceptions. Well the media works hard to build those perceptions. Perceptions aren't always based on reality, and when it comes to politics, perception and reality are almost always at odds.
DeleteDon't make the perceptions that your state will vote for Obama a reality by voting for a third party guy. Oft times, people who vote democrat poll well, but don't actually go to the polls. Just to be on the safe side, vote for the candidate with the best chance to beat Obama.
Remember, people voting for Ross Perot are what led to Clinton in the White House. Most of those Perot voters wanted something better than Bush, but didn't want Clinton. They voted for Perot, and they got Clinton. It's just simple math. Third party candidates will never survive math, anymore than Democrat policies. Every single vote for Romney is a vote against Obama.
"Perception and reality are almost always at odds." Fantastic line. I agree with Keln. Vote for the best candidate (or against the worst one) regardless of the way the media says your state is going to go.
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