Is Voting A Waste of Time?

by sammielee24 21 Replies latest jw friends

  • sammielee24
    sammielee24

    Interesting article -

    Why Voting in the U.S. Election is a COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME...

    Politics / US Politics Nov 02, 2008 - 02:05 PM

    By: Clive_Maund

    The United States likes to portray itself as the bastion of freedom and champion of democracy, but if this were really true then there would be at least 6 or 8 different parties to choose from at election time, and given that it is now a country of over 300 million people a choice of at least 10 different parties would be more appropriate, but instead there are just two. Why is this? The reason comes down to the "concentration of power" issue that we addressed in an earlier article with respect to corporate America and the systematic disenfranchisement of its population.

    The reality is that the two remaining political parties, the Democratic and Republican parties are in fact one, and the only reason that the ultimate step is never taken and the parties merged is that with one party to vote for and an election being completely superfluous, even Joe Sixpack would realize that he is living in a dictatership. So the 2 remaining parties continue to dumbbell around each other for ever, maintaining the thinnest facade of democracy, and controlling the country for their elitist masters via their duopoly of power.

    The plutocratic elites who control the United States and both the Democratic and Republican parties also have complete control over the media, whose job it is to maintain the illusion of democracy, especially during the farcical circus of the election campaign. They do this by playing up contrived and trivial differences between the parties and by playing up personalities who the voting public can identify with, a recent example of this crude but effective approach being the Alaskan hockey mom Sarah Palin suddenly being thrust forward into the limelight, and intended to provide a counterpoint to the sagging old man who would be President, John McCain. At a time of life when he should be content to sit in a rocking chair on his front porch, and dead head the roses and perhaps give occasional advice to troubled young people, McCain intends to try to run a country of 300 million people.

    He looks like one long haul flight would finish him off. Although Obama would seem to be the better choice for President, on account of his youthful energy, generally positive dynamic attitude and eloquent use of English, the sad fact is that he is in the pockets of his plutocratic masters just as McCain is and must end up doing their bidding - if he wasn't his funding would have dried up and he would have been run into a ditch long ago. So with both parties and both candidates completely compromised and representing the same vested interests, it is clear that voting will accomplish absolutely nothing and change nothing - it is a complete and utter waste of time.

    The entire election campaign is a charade whose real purpose is to continue the elites' stranglehold on power, whilst at the same time maintaining the illusion that the US is a free and fair society, but otherwise it is a total waste of time and energy. The lack of any substantive difference between the parties is worth making clear at this juncture, because it means that it is largely irrelevant to the markets who wins the election, and it is the purpose of this article to point this out.

    It is always good to end an essentially gloomy article on a positive note. Whoever wins the election and becomes the next President has got to be an improvement on the crass and imbecilic George W Bush, who only got the job through extreme corruption and graft. If nothing else, election day does provide a chance to socialize and may even present the opportunity for single readers to find a partner. The following chat up lines are tentatively suggested...

    Male voter in line to female voter: "You do realize this is a complete waste of time don't you? - we won't change anything..."

    Female voter: "Well, yes, but what the heck..."

    Male voter: "Might I suggest that we go back to my place and try something a lot more meaningful"...

    Feedback would be welcome from readers who try this chat up line whilst at the polling station, even - and especially - if you end up getting kicked shins and/or a black eye. As long-time readers know I am always ready to adjust my thinking...

    By Clive Maund
    CliveMaund.com

  • jaguarbass
  • jaguarbass
    jaguarbass

    The concious part of me feels its a waste of time.

    The unconcious part of me votes and gets involved just to validate my exhistence and partake in being here.

  • JeffT
    JeffT

    Since it doesn't count for much, do me a favor and vote for McCain.

  • Junction-Guy
    Junction-Guy

    Same here, do me a favor, or shall I say do our country a favor.

  • beksbks
    beksbks

    No, I don't think so.........yet. I do believe we have to exercise the first amendment more before we lose it though. So if there were three viable parties, does that mean that one third of the country would have the majority? Is that actually what we want? Or do we want to hold our leaders accountable? I think if more Americans were more informed and engaged, and willing to be watchdogs, we would be better off.

  • free2beme
    free2beme

    Thanks to the national polls used by the media. I think it is! As apparently the election has already been called and your votes does not matter. As a poll already showed who you would and would not vote for.

  • golf2
    golf2

    A famous line that I subscribe to is, "Show me an honest politician and I'll show you a liar"! I'm into politics in my hometown and let me tell you, it's all BULL! It's all about money and power.



  • CoonDawg
    CoonDawg

    I look at it as "mental masturbation". Sure, you feel good when you do it, but it's really meaningless and just leaves you feeling empty and dirty when the glow immediately after the act is gone. I've been involved with local politics. To me, that's the main place where your vote can really mean something. National politics, not really. Voting in a presidential election is more like tailgating in support of your team. You've picked the guy you are going to root for, now all you need is the face paint and the giant foam finger. You have no deciding influence on wether your guy wins or not.

  • funkyderek
    funkyderek

    From So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish by Douglas Adams:

    [An extraterrestrial robot and spaceship has just landed on earth. The robot steps out of the spaceship...]
    "I come in peace," it said, adding after a long moment of further grinding, "take me to your Lizard."

    Ford Prefect, of course, had an explanation for this, as he sat with Arthur and watched the nonstop frenetic news reports on television, none of which had anything to say other than to record that the thing had done this amount of damage which was valued at that amount of billions of pounds and had killed this totally other number of people, and then say it again, because the robot was doing nothing more than standing there, swaying very slightly, and emitting short incomprehensible error messages.

    "It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see..."

    "You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?"

    "No," said Ford, who by this time was a little more rational and coherent than he had been, having finally had the coffee forced down him, "nothing so simple. Nothing anything like to straightforward. On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."

    "Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."

    "I did," said ford. "It is."

    "So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't the people get rid of the lizards?"

    "It honestly doesn't occur to them," said Ford. "They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates to the government they want."

    "You mean they actually vote for the lizards?"

    "Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course."

    "But," said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?"

    "Because if they didn't vote for a lizard," said Ford, "the wrong lizard might get in. Got any gin?"

    "What?"

    "I said," said Ford, with an increasing air of urgency creeping into his voice, "have you got any gin?"

    "I'll look. Tell me about the lizards."

    Ford shrugged again.

    "Some people say that the lizards are the best thing that ever happened to them," he said. "They're completely wrong of course, completely and utterly wrong, but someone's got to say it."

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