sweet jeebus. it's not like it's the day before the election. you have plenty of time to read up, get registered and do your civic duty. don't be lazy.Fulton said:this should probably be in the political forum, but I'll bite anyway. I'm really kinda tired of this "just vote" campaign. IMHO, I wouldn't want the majority of the current US public voting. I'm not going to vote. I don't pay enough attention to the elections to know what is going on. Too many people don't follow the campaigns, and then see a few smart ass remarks on "The daily show" (great show btw), or some bullsh!t tv comercial, and base their votes on that.
I agree. It is also their duty to educate themselves on the issues and the candidates before doing so.Transcend said:I personally believe it is every citizens duty to vote in a modern democrazy.
Well, in a way you ARE voting -for Bush.Fulton said:this should probably be in the political forum, but I'll bite anyway. I'm really kinda tired of this "just vote" campaign. IMHO, I wouldn't want the majority of the current US public voting. I'm not going to vote. I don't pay enough attention to the elections to know what is going on. Too many people don't follow the campaigns, and then see a few smart ass remarks on "The daily show" (great show btw), or some bullsh!t tv comercial, and base their votes on that.
Keep your extreme closed-mindedness off the board please, there are TONS of pro-choice Republicans out there that fight strongly for our environment. The inverse of your statement would be to say that all Democrats are dope-smoking baby-murdering devil-worshiping communists. Give me a $%&@ break.Dingus McGee said:So consider yourself a Right Wing Conservative Christian who supports raping the environment while trying to take the right to choose away from women.
You piss me off.
gastrocnemius said:I agree. It is also their duty to educate themselves on the issues and the candidates before doing so.
As long as we're waving the Go Vote banner around, I would also emphasize the importance of paying attention to your local elections. The results of those will have a greater direct effect on your quality of life than the presidential race.
1000-Oaks said:Keep your extreme closed-mindedness off the board please, there are TONS of pro-choice Republicans out there that fight strongly for our environment. The inverse of your statement would be to say that all Democrats are dope-smoking baby-murdering devil-worshiping communists. Give me a $%&@ break.
Dingus McGee said:Well, in a way you ARE voting -for Bush.
So consider yourself a Right Wing Conservative Christian who supports raping the environment bla bla DRIVEL.:
I would prefer that the thread did not become politically charged and turn into a train wreck of E screming and E yelling and then gets closed.1000-Oaks said:Hmmm, I thought that was really non-partisan...
I'm certainly not trying to downplay the importance of the presidential race and its attendant policies. It's just a reminder that US government is typically more flexible and accessible from the county level on down.Transcend said:By voting in the presednetial election, you ARE voting locally as your representatives have a big say in what goes on locally. Lots of influence on local policies etc.
Dam you, you have stumbled on the real reason aussie racers are so quick, they are trying to get away from the federal police tracking them down for unpaid voting finesTranscend said:protip: in autralia you get fined for not voting.
Yes, the worlds fate does lie in our hands! Attack terrorism on the offensive (Bush) or sit around and wait for another 9/11 to occur (kerry)bighitfsr said:Voting in the US federal elections is the most important thing I will do all year IMO.
The US elections are etreemely important globally.
The ammount of dammage bush could do to world peace and the environment in the space of 4 more years is massive.
I'm an Australian and North American dual national (so I can vote in both countires). I live in Australia but will be voting in the US for the 1st time this year (in a swinging seat too).
I decided to pursure this to some extent because of Mike Moores books and films (but I'm allready very left wing).
If I can go through all the beaurocracy of voting in the US federal elections from Australia you yankees have no excuses.
Although if your going to vote for Bush just ignore my rant and forget about voting.
Also as much as I prefer the greens over the democrats I will give my vote to the democrats as the world needs to oust Bush.
American voters are the most important people in the world right now.
The worlds fate lies in your hands !!!
Anyway thanks to me and by two younger brothers there will be three extra votes for the democrats in this election. I consider voting in the US federal election is the single most important thing I will do all year (thats saying a lot as I'm a teacher of sorts).
can it you 2. TAKE IT TO THE POLITICS FORUM.WheelieMan said:Yes, the worlds fate does lie in our hands! Attack terrorism on the offensive (Bush) or sit around and wait for another 9/11 to occur (kerry)
sorry, i just cant allow bush to be trashed in such a mindless wayTranscend said:can it you 2. TAKE IT TO THE POLITICS FORUM.
morons. read the thread or get out.
The economist and BBC are very good. I would also like to add reuters as well as the american political science association (http://www.apsanet.org/).Stiff said:As others have written, you have to educate yourself to exercise your duty and right to vote (even if they don't count your vote because you're black, like in Floriduh).
Then the question becomes: how do I catch up on the issues? The answer is to triangulate by looking at a variety of sources - don't depend on Fox or CNN or major networks, which are all corporate PR departments with short attention spans). Here are some good places to start. The Economist and the Financial Times are both venerable conservative UK publications that outshine almost any US news source. Remember that EVERY media organization has an agenda, and some present their agendas more transparently than do others.
economist.com
bbc.com
npr.org
ft.com
enn.com
There is an old American Indian Cree saying that applies to people in your mindset "It is not until the last tree has died, the last river poisoned or the last fish killed that mankind will realise he can't eat money".Kornphlake said:Its funny that guys from half way around the world are concerned about how I vote because it could affect them. We are a competing country in a world economy, why should I vote for any one candidate over another based on how it will affect a foreign country (that isn't attacking us?)
......if given a choice, sacrifice my quality of life to marginally improve somebody else's half way around the world,
hmm...WheelieMan said:sorry, i just cant allow bush to be trashed in such a mindless way
WheelieMan said:or sit around and wait for another 9/11 to occur (kerry)
I think you missed my point, elected officials can only do so much. Sure, politicians throw out ideas like trickle down economics but in the end it's the economic cycle that really will control the economy, and that's something that politicians can't control, they can make the peaks and valleys a little smoother but ultimately we'll see swings in the economy locally and globally.Cave Dweller said:There is an old American Indian Cree saying that applies to people in your mindset "It is not until the last tree has died, the last river poisoned or the last fish killed that mankind will realise he can't eat money".
Think about it mate.........
Hmmm.... maybe you missed my point too. Obviously you live in the USofA so you don't see the MASSIVE impact your politics has on the WORLD. If you think your politics has no effect on the world then you really have no clue at all about what is happening.Kornphlake said:stuff
Don't forget the Christian Science Monitor. (As a non-Christian, the name scared me away until someone forced me to read it...)Stiff said:As others have written, you have to educate yourself to exercise your duty and right to vote (even if they don't count your vote because you're black, like in Floriduh).
Then the question becomes: how do I catch up on the issues? The answer is to triangulate by looking at a variety of sources - don't depend on Fox or CNN or major networks, which are all corporate PR departments with short attention spans). Here are some good places to start. The Economist and the Financial Times are both venerable conservative UK publications that outshine almost any US news source. Remember that EVERY media organization has an agenda, and some present their agendas more transparently than do others.
economist.com
bbc.com
npr.org
ft.com
enn.com
Mate, try Washington DC! None of the 500,000 or so residents have Congressional representation of any type. Didn't we start a revolution in Boston against taxation w/o representation?1000-Oaks said:No kidding, it's a weird feeling. Here I live in America, but I have zero poitical representation because of the state I live in. What I think doesn't matter at all, because the state is firmly in contol of the other party and always will be..
Classic. Thanks for saving me the trouble of writing that myself There are plenty of intelligent, informed people who have weighed the pro's and con's of each of these two guys, and would rather have four more years of GWB. What bohers me is that these two are the best we could come up with, as a country.1000-Oaks said:Keep your extreme closed-mindedness off the board please, there are TONS of pro-choice Republicans out there that fight strongly for our environment. The inverse of your statement would be to say that all Democrats are dope-smoking baby-murdering devil-worshiping communists. Give me a $%&@ break.