Vote or die (October 24, 2008)

Yeah, this article is highly political, and I apologize in advance and fully expect a low rating on this one. Sorry, guys.

It's almost voting time, and the crazies are out in full force -- on both sides. Both candidates could be associated with communism or socialism; both candidates have voted against things they stand for on occasion; both candidates are celebrities of a sort; and both candidates wear suits. I think the point of political campaigns is not to convince anyone to vote for your campaign, but to convince those that already don't like you not to vote for the other guy. Seriously, McCain hasn't done anything that would make him appear to be a worthy candidate in a month -- he's spent most of his time complaining about 'that one'. However, I'm biased, so I'm pretty sure that Obama looks the same way to the Republicans ... and the Independents point out that technically both parties have had their time in the sun and failed us miserably. (Never mind that it doesn't really help that it's impossible to get a random sample of 100 people to talk politics without it turning angry and ugly really quickly.)

For the record, I'm not voting Republican because it would be a stupid decision for me from a financial standpoint, and because they and their supporters seem to be responsible for most of the bills, decisions, speeches, and behaviors I find reprehensible. Not all... but more often than Democrats, at least. I imagine that if I manage to make more than $250,000 a year, I would have to choose between my morals and my finances -- but this year, I'm voting Democrat, because there's no reason not to. Maybe when I'm making that cool six-figure income, I'll favor 'trickle down economics' -- right now, it sounds more like a euphemism for 'peeing on the poor'.

Let's assume that the Republican attack ads - even the craziest and stupidest - are all correct. Let's pretend that Obama is a Muslim Communist who secretly plots for the downfall of the United States with terrorists that hate our wealth and success. Sounds wacky, doesn't it? Well, let's look at our current president -- you know, the one who is personal friends with the Saudi royals who bankroll Osama bin Laden? The one who arranged transportation out of the country for bin Laden's family members without so much as a 'do you know where this guy is' - while the rest of the nation was in lockdown mode? The guy who was best friends with that Enron guy (Ken Lay? I dunno, I don't feel like researching it right now) who effectively looted the pensions of his employees with epic levels of fiduciary misconduct and out-and-out fraud? The guy who decided the best way to protect our freedoms was to take as many of them away as possible so that nobody could find them? The guy who was involved in at least one very suspicious election that had to be decided by the Supreme Court (remember Florida)? The guy who pushed us from a surplus into a deeper deficit, much of it owed to Communist China?

Seriously, after eight years of Bush, it sounds like the Republicans have given up on trying to convince anyone that he's right. Now, as far as I can tell, they're doing their best to convince everyone that Bush was really a Democrat - after all, he ran against John McCain once, and won. Their latest battlecry is 'but the Democrats have run Congress for two years' -- and to be fair, they have held a majority, so one might logically assume that this means they should get more done. (Nevermind that the only majority that really counts is a two-thirds majority -- which is what one needs in order to do nifty things like override the President of the United States when he won't listen to anyone. And yes, getting snippy at the other party isn't helpful towards fixing problems, and taking your ball and going home isn't helpful either -- something that both parties have been guilty of for the past eight years.)

Agh. Alright, enough political rambling. It makes me depressed to think politics, which I suppose is the point of negative campaigning -- to make people too depressed to vote. Just remember to go vote on November 4th, or earlier if you're so inclined, so that we actually have hope and diplomacy for the next four years instead of fear and snideness.

So tonight I should be publishing features -- namely, for ViewMasters, and The Chain Game. Melissa already did one for ViewMasters, though, so I'm going to slack - having extra moderators rocks like that - and just do The Chain Game's post, then do some moderation and play with my lovebiscuit. (That's my term of endearment for my wife, before you jump to any weird conclusions.)

So what're you doing this evening? Please, talk to me about something that doesn't involve politics.