Do you believe voting and our votes will solve everything? If more people actually did vote, will the country change? Does only voting make you a real patriot? Or is it much more than just voting? Do the American people have a duty to make the politicians do their service to the country?

Are you familiar with the adage
"All politics is local."

Brave men cross oceans to fight for democracy, and it make me sad when some men won't even cross the street to vote.

i get a deep sense of satisfaction casting a ballot for the Puppet of my own choosing ....

the political arena is controlled by capitalism, those very few who have very much, will Help or Hinder the "Puppet of the day" as to weather their "victory platforms" comply with their own set capitalistic agenda..

..as for the multitudes who have very little....they get tossed a bone now and then and told to wait for the next election when they can "vote the rascals out"....

anyone who thinks it's government "by the people...for the people" is naive, almost every consequential change in society has been brought about when "we the people" have said enough is enough, and taken it to the streets, weather it be rioting or non-violent mass demonstrations...
only after this happens, do the politico's enact laws and pass bills to assuage the people..

voting ? i see it as no more than a pacifier to give the average Joe a feeling of empowerment and sense of belonging....jmo

actually,it is controlled by Cronyism,which is about as close to actual Fascism as you can get,without instituting Official Fascism!

yea, gotta love those "Not for profit Corporations".

No. Everything is not on the ballot.
Yes. The country changes regardless.
No, voting is a civic duty, that should be respected and honored by the citizens able to do so.
Yes, being a patriot is more than just exercising your right to vote.
Yes, we do have a duty to make sure our representation is doing it's job.

The major problem is apathy.

And now, for my $0.03 (adjusted for inflation)

I vote for "bitching rights", if things do not go the way I would like, I have the right to ***** about it. I feel that if one does not exercise the right, it may be taken away, like so many others have and continue to be eroded. By casting my ballot, I have (in a small way) made my voice heard.

I get perturbed when someone is railing on a political soapbox about something they do not like, and when I ask them if they voted, not caring which way they voted, and they answer "No", I walk away and dismiss them, as they have lost my respect immediately. IF you're not willing to stand up for what you believe when it matters, then standing up and complaining about the results of your inactions after the fact, is completely moot.

Powerful words make up ideas and ideals, without action to back them up, they are hollow and empty. With the right words, to express the right ideas, one person could change the world.

(note: "right" or "wrong" will depend on your perspective.)

Yes but people sometimes fear death for any reason. Or eye contact. Some are scared of saying hello, it's an unsafe reality to know the next door neighbor(s) won't acknowledge a human being just because we are alive. That's what scares me most. Voting is the illusion to a more prosperous future. I don't see this right as much purpose if it never is in fair of the people and general essentials to life are not put forth to the politicians.

Amen.

Stan, re: bitching rights........why would you dismiss, without respect, an intelligent mans perspective of the political climate in the world today ? if he has taken time to study and inform himself on current events and problems facing the populace...does that not qualify him to voice an opinion regardless of weather he voted or not...?

because one chooses to vote or not vote, should in no way be construed as an indication of intellect...imo there are far too many people who vote in blind party lock-step because the pastor told them to, or all those who live around them voted for the local good ol boy...

i prefer to listen with an open ear, to an educated person, rather than one who is just playing follow the leader...weather they have voted or not is of little consequence to me....it wouldn't even matter to me if he was a citizen or not, i would still listen to intellect, and then form my own opinion as to its worth....

instead of a national Voter I.D. card.....i suggest a Voter I.Q. card....

This pretty much sums up my feelings on it.

If all the people that were eligible to vote and don't decided one day to actually show up and support someone other than the 2 parties the country just might change.


In 2012 only 57.5 of eligible voters bothered to show up.

Men ignorant of the truth cross oceans to commit murder for democracy and stupid men believe that voting actually means anything other than a misnomer of truth. Sadly, believing in democracy has lead this world into the absolute mess that is the current reality.

Meanwhile, back in this universe ...

You are correct there, capitalism has been dead for more than a century, actually approaching a couple of centuries here in these united States.

For an interesting read, I would suggest reading "Our Enemy the State" by Albert Nock circa 1935.

This view is reminiscent of the large majority of the "democratic" world today and is the basis for all the problems, the naivety of the masses. Votes and voting resolve nothing and there is more on ballots than should ever be there.

And voting is not a "civic duty" but the cry of the helpless looking for another to do what they are least able to do for themselves. And exercising that "privilege" called voting is far from being patriotic, it is one of the most anti-patriotic acts one can perform, the support of a group of psychopaths that somehow believe they have the right to rule. But even sadder are those of the statist mentality that believe they need to be "led". And by casting a ballot, a voice is certainly heard, but not in the manner implied above.

And if you voted, you have no rights, none at all. You have surrendered rights for privileges and are receiving exactly what you asked for. Not exercising the "privilege" of voting will never result in it being "taken" away, not in mass but only for select individuals they have upset the ruling class.

To one standing on a political soapbox, voter or not, is just pathetic. It is all just an illusion, same as believing the red team is any the more different than the blue team.

And if you would like to view reality, I would suggest going to YouTube MoxNews as he has posted many of the Senatorial race debates so you don't even have to work too hard to get a true perspective. One that is most interesting is the Illinois (yes the land of the truly politically corrupt) race where the Libertarian candidate was denied participation in the debate because it would violate a trust, only red and blue team members can be a part of the trust. Isn't "democracy" (rule of the mob) just grand?

Sir, you are a standout from the masses. While I do not believe in everything said, I applaud the manner in which you have said it.

So what you are really saying is that you would rather base knowledge in this modern world of "make believe" than face reality and search for the truth. This world where the "servants" are the masters and the masters accept their role as "servants" without question. And to those that instead of facing their problems just invent their own fantasy world and pretend they are the masters of their fantasies.

In the words of Ben Franklin:

This argument has a number of flaws:

First, "eligible" to vote, this denotes some sort of a class system based on some contrived ideology that some are entitled to "privileges" not available to all.

Second, "change". Based on what axiom? What would be different? A substitution of one set of statist for another set of statist does not connotate "change", just the methodology of slavery.

And of the 57.5(%) that bothered to show up, can't say too much about their intentions, a misconception? What of the 42.5% of those supposedly eligible that didn't show up? Are they of a higher moral aptitude or just disgusted with the whole process?

Of the the 100% that are eligible, what percentage are they of the whole? What percentage of the whole is not eligible?