One of my favorite songs by the group Rush is “Free Will.” Within the wonderfully crafted lyrics is the following phrase;
“If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.”
This lyric resonates especially in this election season. In an election where our president may be selected from the lesser of two choices, opting not to vote may cause us to end up with the worst choice.
The Republican Party started out with seventeen candidates, but has managed to whittle it down to the two most horrible choices of the lot. It amazes me that Donald Trump can get people to overlook his past and his present and think he can change all of that nature in the future.
Senator Ted Cruz may be the most detested legislator in Congress. He has grandstanded, ridiculed and demeaned others. He almost caused us to default on our debt. One GOP Senator was caught in an unguarded moment and said he would vote for Hillary Clinton before he would vote for Cruz. He later revised that statement saying he never said it.
As for Clinton, she is by far the most qualified candidate in terms of her service as First Lady, Senator and Secretary of State. But, she has had years of fair and unfair scrutiny by the conservative and mainstream media. The dilemma is the fair and unfair parts are clouded together.
So, she carries this extra baggage into the mix. But, she has been vetted more than any other candidate. And, she and Bernie Sanders answer questions better than the other candidates and understands that climate change and water are concerns, economic inequity is an issue and social injustice exists.
Both Trump and Cruz do not speak of climate change as an issue and do not talk of our water problems at all. And, both run counter to their rhetoric with proposed tax plans that would hugely increase the US Debt problem.
So, not voting may leave us with a President who will take us backwards and pick the next few justices on the Supreme Court who could unwind social progress.
musingsofanoldfart 
Believe me, on June 7 I will be going to my local poll station and voting (I prefer to do it in person if possible). I wish I was enthusiastic about Clinton, but I’ll be voting for her for sure.
Janis, I think you used the correct word – enthusiasm. Bernie has lightning in a bottle. Pragmatism is not as sexy, but she will know how to work to get things accomplished. Thanks, Keith
Took the day off to work for an uprising young State Representative. He’s a good egg and I’ve known him and his family my entire life so it’s an honor to volunteer my time. I’ve never missed a vote and I hope I never will!!!
Thanks Lisa. I wrote this as I have heard from more than a few Bernie fans who say they may not vote if their candidate does not win. Unfortunately, the Google history on Hillary is complete with some fair, much unfair criticisms and stories. I love Bernie, too, but not voting is an unwise move as what we may be left with is a huge mess. Hillary, is not perfect, but she is closer to the goal than the others who may end up opposing her. The dilemma our younger folks don’t know is the GOP has made all of these Voter ID laws in many states hoping for a smaller turnout as that helps their chances.
Not voting is not an option, it seems to me. I am disheartened by those young people who swear they will not vote for Hillary if Sanders doesn’t get the nomination. I suspect they mean it — which shows how naive an idealist can be! A reluctance to vote translates into a vote for the opposition. And just LOOK at the opposition!!!
I agree Hugh. See my response to Lisa, which says largely the same thing.
Actually, I wouldn’t mind if Trump or Cruz supporters decided that voting was too much work.
I hear you, but note Hugh’s comment and my response to Lisa (Life with the Top Down). That is my worry.
Yeah. I know.
You may find humorous that Last of the Millenials published an ad that said “Stay home on November x, as Obama is coming off your guns.” X = election day.
I think I’ve heard something like that before. !@#$!
Note to Readers: When I write that Ted Cruz is the most detested man in Congress, I recognize that some may see that as a badge of honor which is why they are voting for him. What I have said several times before is Cruz cannot be the solution to the low ratings of Congress as he is the problem. Many don’t like Congress because they are not getting things done and collaborating. A smaller number don’t like that their way is not winning – they don’t want compromise unless people are doing it their way. That group is the reason for the larger disenchantment. And, Cruz is the poster child who represents that group.
Being strident is one thing, but he should not be hypocritical. He held the country hostage and we almost defaulted on our debts until ten female senators at the last minute told him to get out of the pool and let the adults swim. Other countries were begging us not to default. So, scroll forward three years and strident deficit hawk Cruz has proposed a tax plan that will increase the debt by $3.7 trillion over the next ten years. Plus, outside of Sanders, he plans to increase spending by 6%, with Trump at 3% and Clinton at 2%. Remember this man shut down the government over his concerns over ACA, but said it was OK if we defaulted on our debt and his proposals increase the debt more than any other candidate.
As always, you are the shining voice of common sense my friend. As you say, these are the worst of the worst – and that is saying something. I am continually disheartened by the number of people in this country who are so entrenched in ‘herd mentality’ that they don’t even attempt to utilize logic, nor seem to have the ability to follow a line of reasoning to its conclusion. It is horrifying….
Leiah, herd mentality is an apt description. We do this on far to many things without assessing the consequences. My son is now realizing that he may not need that new computer or phone now that he has to pay for it. I have had my phone for going on four years and it works just fine. Keith
You need to reach more people who don’t seem to realize how important their vote is.
Many thanks. Please feel free to share. Tell them this crazy old fart is citing Rush and suggesting they vote.
I FB and Tweeted.
Merci mon ami.
Now let men devil advocate the details here, Dear Keith, and suggest that any vote cast for a current official of the Federal government just might be akin to participating in a long running, and ongoing, criminal conspiracy.
Suppose a Trump supporter responded to your GOTV effort by suggesting that after watching the movie, The Big Short, and then reading the book of the same name, along with, say, 15 or so other volumes that tick-tocked and took apart the financial sectors’ behavior before, during, and after the economic collapse of aught seven and eight, then followed by similar volumes that chronicled the current administration’s responses to mitigate the damage, shepherd legislation designed to detour a deja vu, while investigating the possibility of criminality in all the cash and carry goings on.
And after all this homework, your fellow citizen suggest that the criminality of “The Street,” was so blatant, the administrative and legislative remedies so tepid, and the reckoning via the Dept. of Justice so feckless as to add up to little more than an institutional hand slap for cookie-jarring, a couple of hundred billon here, there, and everywhere.
The potential voter then sums up… what that credit freeze was, was but… icing on the cake of collusion between Wall Street, K-Street, and a New Kid On The Block executive that was either clueless or co-opted, and regardless of the whys and wherefore the the criminal conspiracy continues to the day. So a vote for any candidate that held any federal office during this period, is tantamount to casting approval for this obviously robust and ongoing, what should one call it; RICO. In fact, any vote for anybody, any political participation sanctions, if only tacitly, but none the less, suggest a citizen’s support for a current corrupt system beyond constitutional remedy and or repair.
What da ya say to that voter, Keith.
I’d say congratulations for making an informed choice. But, I would also say we would not have any elected officials whatsoever, as every politician has been corrupted to some degree and if not will be soon after taking office. The “60 Minutes” episode on Sunday night revealed how many hours our legislators spend dialing for dollars. And, the solution is not folks like Trump who made their money exploiting it from other people and evicting innocent folks from their houses. I have worked with many CEOs in my lifetime and the 80/20 rule applies to them as well, with only about 20% deserving the vast money they make. I have also met some of the greediest people I have ever met as CEOs or owners of organizations, some of which were eleemosynary.
We must fix the process and I don’t know how we can with the incumbent lot. A 28th amendment which would break the equation between money and freedom of choice would help. But, we need to shorten the election process, the terms, introduce better conflicts of interest and insider trading rules, etc. At the end of the day, I would love to see people do the homework you described, at least I could say that person has made his or her informed choice. Maybe the answer is we draft people to serve in Congress from a pool of folks who throw their hat in a ring or are nominated to a pool.
Yet, my biggest beef with the incumbents is the lack of collaboration. These clowns would rather see an idea fail that could help the country if tweaked, so that they can lay blame because it was the other side’s issue. That lack of stewardship is shameful. Right now, we are letting Puerto Rico, our territory, go belly-up and Flint residents go without more money to help, as these so-called leaders cannot stay out of their own way.
Great push back. Thanks for offering your thoughts. Keith
As a Canadian, I treat the American elections like I do American Idol and The Voice – I can’t vote, but the outcome interests me. In the case of the presidency, it not only interests me, but the outcome also affects my country.
We just had a very interesting election of our own, dropping a jaded bureaucrat in favour of a young fresh face and mind. I hope that Justin Trudeau can live up to all the hopes and dreams this country has put on him. After all, a leader can not get by on good looks alone! 😉
As for the U.S. presidency, as a bystander, I agree with a lot of what you have said. I do not understand how Trump can be a front-runner when he puts down everything and everyone who dares criticize him.
When you were quoting Rush (a great Canadian band), I also thought of the Richard Pryor remake of “Brewster’s Millions.” He runs for mayor because the other candidates were all crooks and liers and, the campaign would take much of the money he had to spend to get the inheritance. So, he has an extra choice put on the ballot – “None of the Above.”
Maybe that is an idea for this election, and then they can start over with new candidates.
Lydia, thanks for stopping by. I hope Mr. Trudeau is as good as advertised. I love that he greeted the migrants in person. We could use his big heart here. I remember Brewster’s Millions. Let’s hope the two horrible choices don’t win and we get someone who speaks for those beneath paycheck to paycheck. Please do come back and offer your opinions and comments. Where in Canada do you hail? Keith
I am originally from the prairies; however I have lived on the “wet coast” for much of my life. I am just outside of Vancouver so I am close to mountains, water and just about everything else that is beautiful about this area. And You are welcome here any time as well.
Terrific. My wife and I have been toying with a trip to Victoria Island. We have some blogging friends over that way. Maybe we can grab a cup of coffee or lunch. If we do, it will likely be in the fall when the kids go back to college.
We love the island. We cooked at a camp there one summer. So much more laid back than over here on the mainland.
Thanks. There is a B&B advertised there that looked appealing. I am going to need to dig it out from a file I threw it in.