Honor Your History, Vote.

[net7runner]

All the exhortations have been made, and in better words than I can now manage. Simply put, if you live in the United States of America, tomorrow is your day to exercise your most powerful right as a citizen of this country.

Vote. (http://maps.google.com/vote)

We the People...

[stmfuller]

yeah.
vote fuckers!!!!!!1111one

who early voted? This guy!

[Wyrm]

I voted early.

Here's to hoping Obama doesn't fuck it up.

[[GH-SC]Ryctor]

I voted early for Barr.. Go Libertarians! :D

[Hydroeric]

Here's to actually living in a state where your vote may actually make a difference.
The other side of that is that I have to live in Missouri....aka Misery.

[riposte101]

We should switch away from this winner takes all electoral college voting system we currently have in 48 of the 50 states. If I lived in Maine or Nebraska where the electoral votes are decided by a number of votes per side, I would feel that my vote meant more. Don't get me wrong, I wholeheartedly support the vote. Just saying is all. Go and vote!

[SuicideKing]

Voting after work tomorrow, if Obama wins, I'll take a page from the Democratic handbook and move back to France where the government will be more moderate. ;) My vote will probably get canceled out by some ACORN prodded bum with his home address registered as park bench number 000615. (Yes in Ohio you can register with park benches as your place of residence, if that's not fucked up, I don't know what is.)

[Nim]

Yes in Ohio you can register with park benches as your place of residence, if that's not fucked up, I don't know what is.

Well, since homeless people still have the right to vote, what's the alternative?

[Jukey]

We should switch away from this winner takes all electoral college voting system we currently have in 48 of the 50 states.

Agreed 100%.

[Meatgortex]

Yes SuicideKing only land owners should be allowed to vote like the good old days. Maybe we can go back even further and just have white land owning males.

The right to vote has not been connected to housing status since the civil war, in a movement pushed most famously by Thomas Dorr.

[modeps]

We should switch away from this winner takes all electoral college voting system we currently have in 48 of the 50 states. If I lived in Maine or Nebraska where the electoral votes are decided by a number of votes per side, I would feel that my vote meant more. Don't get me wrong, I wholeheartedly support the vote. Just saying is all. Go and vote!

While the EC isn't the best way to do things, it does at least ensure that there's a majority elected president.

[Primus]

I didn't vote.

[Generation ABXY]

While the EC isn't the best way to do things, it does at least ensure that there's a majority elected president.

On the flip side, not having that guarantee means more candidates may have to curb their policy to become a more representative of the entire country. So, I am indeed for breaking down the votes, as the other fellow mentioned; time and time again, I find myself irked by California and its, what, 55 votes, in particular.

Also, we don't have early voting here (in fact, we're voting on the issue this time around), so I'll be casting my vote (hopefully) before work tomorrow.

[Windsong]

McCain 08!

[DarkDaY]

If I have to turn on the tv up here and see Mcain and Palin yapping for 4 years im going to cancel my cable.

My god I hope America votes in Obama, as does the rest of the world. Will be better, with the mess the bush admin created its a tough call, but at least hes bareble to watch and listen to.

How much anyone want to bet a shit load of the voting machines are rigged, or theres a crap load of shady business going down as of 12 midnight.

Crosses fingers. Even though everywhere I look they say it will take a miracle for Mcain to win. I still don't trust the Republicans. Tv will do that to you;)

[Schnoogs]

If I have to turn on the tv up here and see Mcain and Palin yapping for 4 years im going to cancel my cable.

My god I hope America votes in Obama, as does the rest of the world. Will be better, with the mess the bush admin created its a tough call, but at least hes bareble to watch and listen to.

How much anyone want to bet a shit load of the voting machines are rigged, or theres a crap load of shady business going down as of 12 midnight.

Crosses fingers. Even though everywhere I look they say it will take a miracle for Mcain to win. I still don't trust the Republicans. Tv will do that to you;)

Thanks for this braindead, tin foil laden post...good to know our neighbors to the north put as little thought into politics as many do here. :rolleyes:

[DarkDaY]

lol, relax schoogs, it was an asine post. Don't take yourself so seriously, its unbecoming.

I even did a wink thing for you. Dam I would hate to be someone who actually takes shit like this so seriously. Have fun with life.
o, and vote Obama!

[Schnoogs]

lol, relax schoogs, it was an asine post. Don't take yourself so seriously, its unbecoming.

I even did a wink thing for you. Dam I would hate to be someone who actually takes shit like this so seriously. Have fun with life.
o, and vote Obama!

I guess I should have known better than to take a post of your seriously...and it will be a cold day in hell before I vote for Obama.

[DarkDaY]

I guess I should have known better than to take a post of your seriously...and it will be a cold day in hell before I vote for Obama.


From what I heard on cnn, sounds like you will be just throwing your vote away then. I mean...its C N N.

[Schnoogs]

From what I heard on cnn, sounds like you will be just throwing your vote away then. I mean...its C N N.

This isn't like placing bets on a football game...the idea isn't to vote for the guy you think will win...its the guy you want to win.

[ResistanceAddict]

AH, politics. I will be voting for Obama. Why? Because he is a better fit for people like me and not the money-grubbers. Let them vote Republican. That's fine. All these people saying "Obama will ruin this country!" or "McCain will ruin this country!" seriously need to get a grip on reality, regardless of any bias, ignorance, or opinion.

[Schnoogs]

Because he is a better fit for people like me and not the money-grubbers. Let them vote Republican.

It's always best to operate at the cliche level when deciding your nations future. :p

[DarkDaY]

o.....k, well, nevermind. In the Canadas we like to hold elections for nothing, that no one knows about, cares about and even like to make sure for the 10 k people who will be voting that they can't due to hiddin rules that they only tell you when you get there.
But none of that matters as voting in Canada really doesn't matter.

Anyone whos anyone only pays attention to the us vote. In the end its really the only relative one to us. The only one that will affect us.


On a serious note, Mcains ads today have been pretty dam pathetic, almost embarrassing to watch. To be fair, I have only seen a few Obama ads, while not nearly as bad, still not too great, they get boring fast.

[net7runner]

On a serious note, Mcains ads today have been pretty dam pathetic, almost embarrassing to watch.
Hehe, the McCain ads have been having issues with typos (http://thinkprogress.org/2008/11/03/mccain-spell/) recently.

You'd think if they paid this much to air the things, they'd bother to run it past a few people first....

[ResistanceAddict]

It's always best to operate at the cliche level when deciding your nations future. :p

Am I wrong? Seriously, vote for who's going to have YOUR best interests at heart. Although I'd LIKE to say that if I was rich, being the good hearted person I am, I'd be willing to pay a little more so that less fortunate people wouldn't have to worry about insurance and such. A while back I heard some McCain supporters talking about, "Why should WE have to pay more taxes and whatnot just because other people don't have as much money" and it made me sick to my stomach. Selfishness and greed are such powerful motivators, and people somehow find ways to justify it...

[ProfPuppet]

If you don't vote, you don't get to say anything about politics for the next four years. Not. A. Fucking. Word.

[lost]

Go for it Americans!

I'll be watching you from work. Don't do anythiing crazy now!

[modeps]

I'm currently waiting at our polling location. My town is fairly small so we just have one, and the line is fairly long already. I'm about half way through and have been waiting fir fifteen minutes. When you vote today, be prepared to wait.

[HarverdGrad]

I was going to vote for my party, but some hot chick was giving out coffee mugs (that get free refills at a local coffee shop), and also pretty cool TShirts, so I voted for the other party. It feels like Xmas! :)

[stmfuller]

I was going to vote for my party, but some hot chick was giving out coffee mugs (that get free refills at a local coffee shop), and also pretty cool TShirts, so I voted for the other party. It feels like Xmas! :)

did she also put out?
if not, you wasted your vote.

[Valkyrist]

Well, since homeless people still have the right to vote, what's the alternative?

Actually if any of you people read, no US citizen has the right to vote. It is flat out not in the constitution. The constitution does tell us (15th amendment, if memory serves me right) what we can't rule people out from voting (sex/race), but does not explicitly say we have a RIGHT to vote in federal elections. I could try to track down and link the supreme court's ruling, saying just that. Or, ya know...you could actually go find it yourself and make turn into an *gasp* informed citizen.

However, yes we do have the PRIVILAGE to vote in federal elections. And seeing as how the only requirements in most states, other than being over 18, is having a state-issued photo ID (see: Driver's License), very very very few of you have a valid excuse for not voting today.

Please note I'm not endorsing either candidate: that's entirely up to you. I would ask if all of you who didn't catch any of the debates, to at least look them up on youtube or something. Spend an hour watching and try to make an informed decision today. Please don't just vote "because he's a democrat" or "because he's a republican". Because that hour spent will be invested in the next 4 YEARS of policies in an already troubling time in the US.

[Nim]

Actually if any of you people read, no US citizen has the right to vote. It is flat out not in the constitution. The constitution does tell us (15th amendment, if memory serves me right) what we can't rule people out from voting (sex/race), but does not explicitly say we have a RIGHT to vote in federal elections.

I do read, thank you very much. In fact, I'm a lawyer.
Whether or not a right is affirmatively guaranteed in the federal (or a state) Constitution does not affect whether it is a right in the first place.
I have the right to own an Xbox, even though that's not in the bill of rights.
By the same token, homeless people in Ohio have the right to vote.

So maybe answer the question, instead of suggesting that everyone else here is ignorant?

[modeps]

Yep, total wait time to vote in small/mid-size town Connecticut: 45 minutes. I got there at 7:05am.

[bjornbarspingvinen]

If Obama doesn´t win it must be rigged.

[TeeCakes]

Actually if any of you people read, no US citizen has the right to vote.

What do you mean, "you people"?!

Obama FTW

[modeps]

If Obama doesn´t win it must be rigged.

Not really. Obama is partially black after all... and like it or not, there's still a large portion of America that have backwoods beliefs. Of course, in the same sense, those same people probably wouldn't want Palin in there either.

I'm predicting another fairly close election.

[Schnoogs]

Am I wrong? Seriously, vote for who's going to have YOUR best interests at heart. Although I'd LIKE to say that if I was rich, being the good hearted person I am, I'd be willing to pay a little more so that less fortunate people wouldn't have to worry about insurance and such. A while back I heard some McCain supporters talking about, "Why should WE have to pay more taxes and whatnot just because other people don't have as much money" and it made me sick to my stomach. Selfishness and greed are such powerful motivators, and people somehow find ways to justify it...

I'm glad you go off of what the supporters say and not the candidates...another informed voter.:rolleyes:

[Schnoogs]

I do read, thank you very much. In fact, I'm a lawyer.
Whether or not a right is affirmatively guaranteed in the federal (or a state) Constitution does not affect whether it is a right in the first place.
I have the right to own an Xbox, even though that's not in the bill of rights.
By the same token, homeless people in Ohio have the right to vote.

So maybe answer the question, instead of suggesting that everyone else here is ignorant?

The constitution doesn't mention nukes...yet you don't have the right to own one of those. :confused:

[Schnoogs]

Not really. Obama is partially black after all.

Yeah because there is zero reason to vote against him policy wise....oh wait :rolleyes:

[captainspankypants]

I work in Chicago, but I'm really glad I live in Indiana right now. Indiana is a possible swing state for the first time in a really, really long time. I voted Obama this morning, and so did my wife. As my father in-law, who usually votes Republican, says, "Obama is the only game in town."

[modeps]

Yeah because there is zero reason to vote against him policy wise....oh wait :rolleyes:

I never claimed that was the only reason, however to many people in this nation, it is enough of a reason.

[modeps]

One thing I noticed as well when I went to vote, people would show up and look at the line then just turn around and leave. I wonder if they really expected it to be an in-and-out process. CT is expecting something like an 85-90% turnout for this election.

[AspectVoid]

I voted before I went into work this morning. One thing to remember today is to not trust the Exit Polls. Current studies show that as many as 1/3rd of the people who voted or will vote did so via absentee ballots or early voting. Because of this, the Exit polls may be extremely off. for instance, in one North Carolina area, Obama led the early voting 2 to 1, but polls in the area show him and McCain to be dead even there.

[Stalwart]

If you don't vote, you don't get to say anything about politics for the next four years. Not. A. Fucking. Word.

Sure I do. Let me start with saying this: voting in this election provides the participants nothing more than the illusion of control, and a pretty transparent illusion at that. For which wing of the oligarchy are you going to cast your vote?

That said, the idiological flavor of the Democrat wing seems to be (slightly) less oriented toward pursuit of aggressive (read: murderous) foreign policy and the associated epic public debt.

So I guess if one were to take a lesser-of-two-evils approach, one could justify voting. Personally, I can't in good conscience lend my support to either faction.

[Meatgortex]

Stalwart, then vote for a third party, or write in someone you would rather have running the country.

If you don't get counted at all, you can't expect anyone to care about your stance on issues. If all the people we hated the two party system would vote for a third party instead of fail to vote out of apathy you might actually force a change.

Regardless there is more then one thing to vote for, do you have no opinion on any of the state or local ballot measures?

[ElektroDragon]

Going to vote for Obama, but for my governor I'm voting for Dino Rossi, a republican.

[TeeCakes]

Methinks Meatgortex missed the "Smarty Jones" title. :cool:

[ElektroDragon]

Also I think its ridiculous that the country can't get its act together and actually has long lines to vote! I'd expect this from a third world nation, not us.

[Stalwart]

Regardless there is more then one thing to vote for, do you have no opinion on any of the state or local ballot measures?

With all due respect, I see my position as constructive. If voter turnout was 10%, could the rulers continue to claim legitimacy? 1%? 0?

I think that participating at all constitutes tacit approval of the system itself, and I don't approve. I think that there are many people who share this view, even if only unconsciously. I think that is why voter turnout has often been abysmal in this country. We are governed mostly without consent, and I think many of us sense that, and naturally recoil at it. Most of the time, we must accept it for practical reasons, much as a slave must accept the yoke of his master, but we don't have to like it.

Sorry to be a wet blanket in the get-out-the-vote party. The truth is often something we prefer to ignore.

[Schnoogs]

however to many people in this nation, it is enough of a reason.

And you know this how? :confused:

[Valkyrist]

I do read, thank you very much. In fact, I'm a lawyer.
Whether or not a right is affirmatively guaranteed in the federal (or a state) Constitution does not affect whether it is a right in the first place.
I have the right to own an Xbox, even though that's not in the bill of rights.
By the same token, homeless people in Ohio have the right to vote.

So maybe answer the question, instead of suggesting that everyone else here is ignorant?

Maybe you should work on your reading comprehension, instead of trying to twist words and getting defensive.

Your xbox analogy is both flawed and irrelevent. The federal government does not regulate if you're allowed to go to walmart and buy an xbox. Nice try, though. And unless you specialize in constitutional law (which I seriously doubt, given your post), I see zero relevence what your profession is. I'm a 3D animator, but that does not necessarily make me an expert game critic.

And though I wasn't even addressing the original question (I was just making a correction on the assumption that we have a right to vote), I will now. If homeless people (or any other person) in Ohio do not meet the state's constitutional requirements to be an eligable voter, they cannot vote in federal elections. Simple as that.

Here's a link (http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/00-949.ZPC.html) to the Bush v Gore supreme court case that explicitly states that no US citizen's right to vote is protected by the constitution. In which case, one can see how the federal government can and does tell certain groups of legal US citizens over the age of 18 that their votes cannot count.

"The Equal Protection Clause does not protect the right of all citizens to vote," the lower court ruling stated, "but rather the right 'of all QUALIFIED citizens to vote."
And a nice quote from an easier-to-read summery of this case. (http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Democracy/A_Right_to_Vote.html)
True, the Constitution contains specific, hard-won language in the 15th and 19th Amendments that forbids discrimination in voting on the basis of race or sex. But these prohibitions don't establish a universal right to vote. Thus, Congress cannot selectively disenfranchise women in the District of Columbia but can, and does, render all of its residents voiceless in Congress by denying them representation in the House and Senate. The Florida legislature may not (theoretically, anyway) dismiss only the votes of African Americans; but as the Supreme Court kindly reminded us in Bush v. Gore, it can dismiss everyone's votes. Likewise, Florida cannot selectively deny African-American ex-convicts the right to vote in state and federal elections, but it disenfranchises all ex-offenders-some 400,000 of them.

The entire point, which you missed blatently, is that voting is a privilage, and that everyone here should appreciate and act on it.

[Flatpicker]

I was really hoping that the nitpicky BS was going to stop today.
All the OP said was to vote, how the fuck did that become a major issue.

How bout this:
Vote or Don't, just let the drama stop...

[modeps]

I was really hoping that the nitpicky BS was going to stop today.
All the OP said was to vote, how the fuck did that become a major issue.

How bout this:
Vote or Don't, just let the drama stop...

There's a reason why people don't like discussing politics and religion in mixed company... because there's basically no changing anyone's mind, and there's always something there that you can attack or be attacked for.

[BlueBomber]

vote vote vote vote voted votes voter vote

Just testing to see if the mods did something cute with every instance of the word 'vote'.

[TeeCakes]

I'd be funny if they censored it whenever I typed VP nominee Sarah [CENSOR]'s name...

OMG! They did it!! That's so ap[CENSOR]g!!

If you smeeeeelllll what Barack is cookin', VOTE FOR HIM

[Evil Avatar]

I voted. I'm sick as a dog and I still dragged my happy ass to the polls. There was no line. There never is where I'm located.

[Meatgortex]

If voter turnout was 10%, could the rulers continue to claim legitimacy?

[snip]...

I think that is why voter turnout has often been abysmal in this country. We are governed mostly without consent...

You've answered your own question. Voter turnout has been abysmal and yet each elected official certainly claims legitimacy.

I understand the thought behind what you are saying, I just think it's been proven not to work. My guess is that we'll just have to disagree on that.

When it comes to voting, conscientious objection and apathy can be mistaken for one another. While a vote against the two party system can't be mistaken for anything other then what it is.

[ProfPuppet]

If you don't vote, you don't get to say anything about politics for the next four years. Not. A. Fucking. Word.

Sure I do. Let me start with saying this: voting in this election provides the participants nothing more than the illusion of control, and a pretty transparent illusion at that. For which wing of the oligarchy are you going to cast your vote?

That said, the idiological flavor of the Democrat wing seems to be (slightly) less oriented toward pursuit of aggressive (read: murderous) foreign policy and the associated epic public debt.

So I guess if one were to take a lesser-of-two-evils approach, one could justify voting. Personally, I can't in good conscience lend my support to either faction.

Ah, the 'it doesn't really matter anyway so why bother' approach to life. I don't think anyone in politics is a pure devil or pure saint, and that both major parties primarily exist to maintain the status quo. However, if you didn't even try to change things, or write in your own candidate, then I doubt your opinions on politics hold much value for anyone other than yourself. So maybe I should have said, 'you don't get to say anything about politics without a high possibility of all listeners looking at you with a mixture of sadness and scorn before they burst out laughing.'

That being said, there are still other issues to vote on, aside from the presidency.

Anyway, as Dave Sedaris said on this election, and people not wanting to choose between the two major players, or being completely undecided:

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?”
To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.

I wonder if, in the end, the undecideds aren’t the biggest pessimists of all. Here they could order the airline chicken, but, then again, hmm. “Isn’t that adding an extra step?” they ask themselves. “If it’s all going to be chewed up and swallowed, why not cut to the chase, and go with the platter of shit?”
Ah, though, that’s where the broken glass comes in.

[Schnoogs]

Ah, the 'it doesn't really matter anyway so why bother' approach to life. I don't think anyone in politics is a pure devil or pure saint, and that both major parties primarily exist to maintain the status quo. However, if you didn't even try to change things, or write in your own candidate, then I doubt your opinions on politics hold much value for anyone other than yourself. So maybe I should have said, 'you don't get to say anything about politics without a high possibility of all listeners looking at you with a mixture of sadness and scorn before they burst out laughing.'

That being said, there are still other issues to vote on, aside from the presidency.

Anyway, as Dave Sedaris said on this election, and people not wanting to choose between the two major players, or being completely undecided:

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. “Can I interest you in the chicken?” she asks. “Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?”
To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.

I wonder if, in the end, the undecideds aren’t the biggest pessimists of all. Here they could order the airline chicken, but, then again, hmm. “Isn’t that adding an extra step?” they ask themselves. “If it’s all going to be chewed up and swallowed, why not cut to the chase, and go with the platter of shit?”
Ah, though, that’s where the broken glass comes in.

I like how one of the canidates is being compared to a plate of broken glass with shit in it. :confused:

[ElektroDragon]

I'm currently waiting at our polling location. My town is fairly small so we just have one, and the line is fairly long already. I'm about half way through and have been waiting fir fifteen minutes. When you vote today, be prepared to wait.

You only need to wait if you live in a place that sucks. Sorry. I went at 2PM and had zero wait.

[ProfPuppet]

I like how one of the canidates is being compared to a plate of broken glass with shit in it. :confused:

I purposefully left out which candidate Dave Sedaris obviously is talking about. :(

Even though I agree with him, but still. Anyway, the thread is dead now, we all know the results.

So, uh.... Any games out there that depict politics semi-realistically? (Hey, it's EA! I have to mention games.)