Anonymous
10/04/2011 16:14
Subject: What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
jsteele wrote:Anonymous wrote:Once we get to the general election in November and it is obvious that one of two people is going to win, you are simply wasting your time voting if you do not choose one or the other. Even if you dislike both candidates, one is more objectionable than the other. It is childish at this point to vote for a third candidate. It has no impact, no one cares. The Democrats nominating someone other than Obama is equally a waste of time.
I live in DC. My presidential vote will be insignificant regardless for whom I vote. In response to 12:35, I could see supporting the Republican in such circumstances. Obviously, we are nowhere close to such circumstances.
As Stephen Colbert would say, "We'll just put you down for Obama then."
takoma
10/04/2011 14:37
Subject: What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
PS on my last note: It was not directed at The Man, but at all of us.
takoma
10/04/2011 14:36
Subject: Re:What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
TheManWithAUsername wrote:Anonymous wrote:It's obscene that common sense, rational ideas are NOT even part of the debate.
Someone's said this before, but isn't it funny how common sense, rational ideas typically seem to track YOUR ideas?
What's your point? That all ideas are equally valid? That anyone loudly proclaiming his/her rightness is per se hypocritical or silly?
Imagine three people doing a math problem and getting three different answers. Each of them is confident in her answer and confident that the other two are way off. Two of them are definitely wrong on both counts, but one of them may be right.
But, if I may push the simile a bit further, a math problem might have different answers under different sets of assumptions. And I think much of the arguing here is precisely because there are different sets of assumptions. We think the other side are idiots because they do not see that their conclusions do not gibe with our assumptions.
In case that sounds like a reason to drop the whole discussion, that's not my intent. It's to try to understand the other side's thinking a bit better than "What a bunch of idiots!"
TheManWithAUsername
10/04/2011 13:37
Subject: Re:What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
Anonymous wrote:It's obscene that common sense, rational ideas are NOT even part of the debate.
Someone's said this before, but isn't it funny how common sense, rational ideas typically seem to track YOUR ideas?
What's your point? That all ideas are equally valid? That anyone loudly proclaiming his/her rightness is per se hypocritical or silly?
Imagine three people doing a math problem and getting three different answers. Each of them is confident in her answer and confident that the other two are way off. Two of them are definitely wrong on both counts, but one of them may be right.
Anonymous
10/04/2011 11:48
Subject: Re:What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
It's obscene that common sense, rational ideas are NOT even part of the debate.
Someone's said this before, but isn't it funny how common sense, rational ideas typically seem to track YOUR ideas?
Anonymous
10/04/2011 11:28
Subject: What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I'm a republican, moving toward independant. Considering voting for Obama because of the GOP candidate freak show. Guessing Obama will win only because of his public speaking skills. No one can compare to that. His message is awesome but not so much in practice.
I think it is perfectly rational for republicans to vote for Obama. He is a republican. He supports smaller government and fewer regulations, prefers deficit reduction over unemployment, and based on the recent debt ceiling debate, he wants to reduce taxes, The republican choice is between voting for lunatics (Perry, Bachman, Christie) or Obama. For Democrats or center-left leaning individuals who support radical ideas like the social safety net (social security, medicare, unemployment insurance) and sane financial, environmental, and consumer regulations, we have a tough choice. If you are like me and think Romneycare/Obamacare is not good enough and that unemployment is our top national issue, then you vote against Obama.
President is too important. I don't want to settle for something less than what I believe. I plan to vote third party, if a reasonable candidate runs, or I plan to write-in.
And thus, you become completely meaningless in the general election.
Hardly. Do you thing Ralph Nader votes were meaningless in the 2000 election? If Obama and Cain are the nominees of the two major parties, a white, third party candidate will win in a landslide. Obama has doomed any other AA candidate for a long time.
TheManWithAUsername
10/03/2011 21:11
Subject: What do you do if you know you are a one-term president?
Anonymous wrote:I already am meaningless. The debate I would like to see never happens, even with a democrat holding the presidency. I don't even care if I win the debate, I just want to hear someone with my views make an argument.
It's obscene that common sense, rational ideas are even part of the debate. I actually would prefer the republicans to drive this country into the ground, rather than fake democrats.
"Governor Republican, you've said that 15% of children in the richest country in the world should regularly experience hunger. Senator Democrat says that number should be closer to 10%. What do you have to say to that?"