[AirlinePilot]

Sad..... Man in the street

Moved to Open Discussion = “Post off-topic (non-peak oil) current events news & media here.” –FL

[kpeavey]

Its a fact that stupid people vote stupid.

All the more reason to get out there and make sure you don't have a hanging chad.

To stop voting because you won't make a difference is the very reason why you MUST vote. Giving up is what the other side wants. Not voting puts you in with the silent majority. One reason the country is going to the shitter is because too many people think they can't make a difference. If they would just get off their duffs and take action rather than complain, they would find that their vote can indeed make a difference.

While it is a fact that ballot boxes are stuffed, dead pets vote all the time, and people win elections in areas where you can't find a person who voted for them, the best defense we have against corruption is still the vote. Democracy comes with responsibility. Not voting is to give up your responsibility and accept whatever fate is handed to you by someone who is unconcerned with your rights. By not voting you hand over control to people who should not be in power. If you don't want the responsibility that comes with a democracy, then by all means-don't vote. Your responsibility will be taken away and replaced with dictate.

[dukey]

McCain or Obama it doesn't matter. They are all new world order council on foreign relations candidates. They all churn out the SAME policies. Morons spend all day arguing whether they want to get slapped with the left or right hand, failing to notice the decision they are going to get slapped has already been made for them.

[ROCKMAN]

Unfortunately dukey I agree with most of your sentiment. There are some minor differences between Sen. Obama and Sen. McCain but, IMO, insignificant in the long run. Our political system is dominated by the 2-party system with neither party interested in changing the process. The parties have been very successful in generating the impression that choosing one over the other will change the lives of voters. In that sense, no one vote really matters: regardless of whom you vote for the system will not alter to any significant difference. As long as the majority of Americans buy into the "change" chant offered by any candidate in every election cycle no thought will ever be given to developing additional parties to challenge the status quo. In that sense, IMO, no one's vote really matters.

[Newfie]

SAD? Yes, on two counts, at least.

True there are silly people out there who vote for silly reasons, on both sides of the isle.

But it is equally sad that someone would hold them up to ridicule for his own personal advancement.

Really, can't we do better than than Howard Stern? I mean that is really low hanging fruit, sorta swilling in the gutter, month old fruit.

Yeah, I'm biased against him. I think intelligent conversation elevates us, particularly when we disagree. Although, to be honest, I know little of Stern because I find him so offensive I don't/can't listen.

That said I gonna either A) vote for George Carlin - dead he is better than either blue or red and we can listen to his tapes for guidance or B) one of the lesser parties such as Green.

[galacticsurfer]

This is why the swing voter is so critical. These make up 10-20% of the population. Everyone else voteson habit, i.e. what their parents, racial,ethnic social group generally thinks. Switch this conversation around to Mccain suppporters in Redneck territory and ask if they support Mccain because he wants to take out the trops and is pro-choice and see what happens. Interesting at any rate for a sociology course.

[frankthetank]

Just my opinion, but i could ask a lot smarter WHITE people those same questions and probably get the same answers. People don't have a FUCKING CLUE! That is what is wrong. They don't care. They want to feed their fat faces with McD's, drive their fat vehicles to their mailboxes, and go to work for 70hrs a week to a pointless, mind numbing job...

I don't care who wins. Either one is the same and we are going down the tubes no matter what. Like we can get universal healthcare with a debt of $10 trillion...will the doctors work for free? We'll be lucky if we get our daily bread and a bowl of gruel, after working in the fields.

[dinopello]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ROCKMAN', 'U')nfortunately dukey I agree with most of your sentiment. There are some minor differences between Sen. Obama and Sen. McCain but, IMO, insignificant in the long run.

[ROCKMAN]

I agree with you dino about applying ourselves to local issues. If you're tenaceous you can still have an impact at that level. That's where I focus my personal efforts. I was commenting about the national level. As far as cabinate appointees and their effect at the agency level I still have my doubts. On those few occasions when I've rubbed elbows with those administrative types they made it clear that there is very little if any change in the way they conduct business when a new administration is elected.

[AirlinePilot]

A. I never said dont vote

B. I did not make the link to ridicule black people.

C. I know that there are plenty of other stupid people of ALL races
who could make the same soundbites.

D. This is why we are all so mightily screwed.

[dinopello]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ROCKMAN', 'I') agree with you dino about applying ourselves to local issues. If you're tenaceous you can still have an impact at that level. That's where I focus my personal efforts. I was commenting about the national level. As far as cabinate appointees and their effect at the agency level I still have my doubts. On those few occasions when I've rubbed elbows with those administrative types they made it clear that there is very little if any change in the way they conduct business when a new administration is elected.

[Newfie]

AP said:
D. This is why we are all so mightily screwed.

Yup!!!!!!!!!!!!

[kpeavey]

D. This is why we are all so mightily screwed.

+1

[Ainan]

Koko the gorilla in IQ tests has been shown to have an IQ between 70 and 95, often stated to have an IQ of 91. The world average human IQ is 88. Koko would vote for the most entertaining candidate who gave her lots of food.

If the humans around her started chanting 'Obama! Obama! Obama!' she would too if she could talk. Prehaps she would even rationalise it afterwards, such as agreeing with his policys whatever they are.