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Originally posted by TheRedComet
I've been writing on this topic extensively over the past several weeks, and I'd very much like to summarize my feelings on the matter here:
I do not plan to vote.
When one's vote lends credence to a system whose policies have continually led to the degeneration of human rights and the murder and exploitation of innocents-- both foreign and domestic-- how can one justify the act of voting? Feeding into such a system while acknowledging its tremendous faults is not only unconscionable, but morally reprehensible. To be involved is essentially to dab up a bit of the blood with one's own hands.
The platforms of the two major candidates are strikingly similar once you've looked past their superficial differences. They're both war-mongers and statists. They both support laws that will further strip us of our rights and will likely embroil us in more pointless, foreign wars. They both support the terrorist nation of Israel and will continue to fund their campaign of terror even as the rest of the world sits aghast at their obnoxious sabre-rattling. And that's just naming a few.
Voting for the 'lesser of two evils' is the stupidest thing one can do. You're still casting a vote for evil and, furthermore, by voting, you're giving your consent to this oppressive, corrupt establishment. by NOT voting however, you withold that consent, effectively telling the governement that enough is enough. If only 5-10% of the electorate showed up to vote in any given election, the powers that be, as well as the rest of the world, would take notice. Only in diminishing the legitimacy of the current, bloated, ineffectual government can we hope to ever replace it with something even remotely like Democracy.
I wish that casting a vote could change things. I wish that there was indeed a candidate who could look out for the interests of the people and lead our country in a nobler, more prosperous direction. There was a time when I once believed that it was possible. During the last election, my first, I actively campaigned for Obama, hoping with all my heart that the state of my country would improve after the Bush years and believing all the while that I was doing good in the world. Thankfully, I'm no longer so naive. Candidates of such a great caliber don't exist, and I feel confident that such a candidate will never emerge from either of the established political parties, who are worn through to their very core with corruption. In the terrible framework of modern American politics, I'm doubtful that even a strong independent candidate could affect much change in office-- much less win. The powers that be seem determined to keep independent candidates out of the picture, which makes it much more difficult to "work with what we've got".
The system is broken. Don't play the game. Don't vote in 2012 and do your part to delegitimize this joke of a government. Casting a vote at this point, whether it be for either of the major candidates or someone else, is only prolonging the madness. Stop feeding the beast and exercise your right NOT to vote. We deserve better than this. We deserve a leader who won't engage in activities of questionable legality (drone strikes, detaining American citizens indefinitely for no good reason) and who won't yield to the influence of major corporations.