Four years ago I was duped.
Coming
to the conclusion that the Democratic Party was no longer
representing my views, I finally decided to vote for
the “third party du jour,” the Green Party, and its
candidate Ralph Nader. I understood the gravity
of the situation if Shrub were to win (although I don’t
think any of us realized quite how far it would go),
but for me it seemed like a clear cut decision, since
I lived in California where Gore was a sure win (leading
Shrub by double digits in the final weeks leading up
to the election), and I was really beginning to find
myself leaning further and further left, towards the
Green Party.
However,
just two days before the election, some of the polls
were starting to call a closer race. Some of the major
networks had Gore leading Shrub by four points with
a margin of error of four points. Now I felt like I
was obligated to vote for Gore. So, I backed away from
my heart and my ideals, walked into the polls, and created
a hanging chad for Gore.
And
what happened? Gore won California by 12 points,
and just as significant, Nader did not win the 5% of
the popular vote necessary to secure federal funds for
the Green Party. I had been duped by a media that
“creates” the news in order to increase its viewing
share.
In
the next couple of years, I finally came to the conclusion
that I would never compromise my vote again. If real
change is going to come about in this country, progressives
need to begin voting for the individuals that they want
to see in office, and stop voting against the person
they don’t want in office.
Fast
forward four years and we find a similar situation.
Shrub vs. Generic Democrat, with Nader running a sideshow.
Nader is running on principle alone and has no real
hopes of affecting any change, but meanwhile he sucks
votes away from the Generic Democrat to the delight
of the Republicans.
Of
course, there have been a few significant changes, politically
as well as personally. I now have four years of
history to examine and wonder what if the Supreme Court
actually had balls, and also to speculate about what
would happen with another four years with Shrub as our
President. Also, Nader is no longer running under
the Green Party banner (that distinction belongs to
David Cobb). In fact, Nader is only on the ballot
in 34 states, many of those being a gift from the Reform
Party. Probably most significant, I now live in
Colorado, which because of changing demographics has
become a battleground state, unlike in 2000 when it
was a sure win for Shrub.
So
again, the question is the same. Vote for Nader,
the only candidate still running who represents my point
of view, or vote against Shrub?
Just
a few months ago the answer was clear. I was voting
for Nader and I was proud of it. I’ve come to
respect and value those who stand up for what they believe
in, even if it’s in a futile battle.
However,
my convictions have begun to waver. Knowing that
Nader isn’t actually going to win, I want to have some
effect on the election. So my first thoughts were
that I needed to compensate for my “non-vote” by encouraging
those that didn’t vote in the 2000 election to actually
get out to the polls this year and vote for Kerry.
Now, during this process I have learned more about Kerry,
and I found that he has a very good environmental record,
which for me happens to be by far the most important
issue. In fact, I’ve told myself that this issue
alone could sway my vote. How good is Kerry’s
environmental record? Well, the League of Conservation
Voters gives Kerry a lifetime voting score of 92%, which,
believe it or not, is even higher than the lifetime
score of Dennis Kucinich, who was the true “liberal”
running for the Democratic nomination.
So
with just over two weeks before the election, where
does that leave me? Undecided is all I can say.
At this point, all I can be sure of is that, on November
2nd, I’ll be at the polls making my selection on an
electronic voting machine. No hanging chads this
year.
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Top
5 Reasons to vote this year
1.
4 more years of Bush
2. Great excuse to use to call in late for work
3. To get that cool “I Voted” sticker
4. Polls are a great place to meet single women (or
so I’ve heard)
5. 4 more years of Bush
Brant
can be reached at brant@babblog.com. |
