It's Okay That You're Not Voting Today en-us Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 -0500 Sun, 13 Jul 2014 19:12:59 -0400 John Carney Joe Garland Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:15:47 -0500 That was an inside-thing for John Carney; someone in his family won an election by only a few votes. Chelsea Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:19:55 -0500 To imply that anyone is saying that one vote can change the world (rainbows and unicorns!) is so idiotic and it's just an attempt to distract from the actual point. No one's biting, give it up. You're the "dumbshit." The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:47:04 -0500 Don't be a dumbshit. A single vote can change the world. The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:44:47 -0500 Yep! I'm <B>MAKING A DIFFERENCE</B>! My one vote will tip the election! Yay for me! I'm <b>so not apathetic</b>! The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:41:20 -0500 "What the f$ck have so many people in our Armed Services died for over the last two and a half centuries?" So tools like you can shoot off their mouth with patriotic grandstanding and pretending punching holes in a card will influence which people are put in charge of shit. That and so unicorns can fly out of my butt. The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:38:22 -0500 That's a great plan, YT. That's fucking ingenious, if I understand it correctly. That's a Swiss fucking watch. adam Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:53:35 -0500 our constitution says nothing of seperation of church and state. Sunset Shazz Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:08:02 -0500 Good stuff, Carney. Gary Becker would be proud. Jordan Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:06:25 -0500 I am an athiest and I support the revolt against spending. Tea parties have little to do with religious or social causes and everything to do with economic and political freedom. Vote against the tyranny! GO VOTE! Joe Garland Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:52:19 -0500 Couldn't agree more. How could a couple of votes here and a couple of votes there affect, say, the property tax policy of a small town in suburban New York? twoinaday Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:49:35 -0500 carney, this is two completely ridiculous posts/comments today wtf happened, you used to be better than this has someone stolen you brain, or your identity? this is the ranting of a lazy, grass fed cow voting is not about your individual ability to change the world, your not f'ing superman, its about aggregates you know who cares a lot about voting, ideologues, the only way to keep the screaming 2% in check with their stupid ideas and ridiculous policies is for intelligent, rational people to show up in droves and drown them out the failure of people to do just that over the last 50yrs has left us where we are now, cowardly politicians beholden to moneyed interested voted in by idealogical nut cases you glorification of being a fence sitting douche bag is not just stupid, its dangerous and if you don't like any of the candidates get involved, start a party or run lemmerdeur Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:51:59 -0500 Then you, sir, do not understand the significance of the negation of two referenda in favor of term limits. That's the kind of fascist backroom shenanigans that brought us gifts like Prohibition, which I know will touch your heartstrings as it does mine, as you are a right lush and proud of it. I'm sure Thompson would have done the same thing and shoved our two votes in favor of term limits right where Bloomberg did. But he did not. Bloomberg did. Sometimes voting against someone is just as important as voting for someone. I'm not arguing against your thesis, I'm arguing against its improper application with regard to the NYC mayoral race - and other NYC races involving filth who subverted my referendum votes. shano Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:16:47 -0500 Be prepared to welcome your Theocratic overlords, they will try to overturn the separation of church and state. shano Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:14:34 -0500 Exactly. And when the teabagger wing nut who gets in office tries to pass a Theocratic agenda..there will be some bitching, guaranteed! shano Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:11:33 -0500 So, why did various groups fight so long and hard for the right to vote? (ie women, blacks) Maybe 'cause you a white male and have always had the 'privilege'! How could one be indifferent when a certified teabagger could take a seat in congress? yuck! AJ58 Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:00:03 -0500 @mobeer4don Hah can't argue with you there. My comment was referring more towards the fleet of first-time political experts for whom it became sexy to scream "F*ck Bush" from 2000-2008. It'll be interesting to see if the same "yeeeeeah Obama boyeeee" and "I love Obama because he's all about chaaaaange" crowds show up in 2012. Especially if he's hasn't delievered on anything w/r/t his ambiguous promises. Again, not a Bush apologist or a McCain supporter. Chelsea Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:08:09 -0500 I debated on whether or not to comment on this since I know I'm just giving you exactly the kind of attention you were crying crying crying for by writing this. But this is the most whiny, spoiled, misinformed piece of writing I've ever read. Did you seriously just say that a bumper sticker is more effective than voting? That makes sense, since the last time I passed by a "MEAT IS MURDER" bumper sticker I thought to myself "Hm...good point...I've suddenly become so informed on the virtues of vegetarianism I'll never eat a cow again!" Drew Robertson Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:06:57 -0500 I voted this morning. I am proud to be a citizen of New York. Go read your Camus. 1000xZero Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:50:15 -0500 And this is why the companies are in such bad shape too. The shareholders do not vote either. Jeff Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:42:55 -0500 It's disgusting that all of you thankless tools take voting for granted. Absolutely deplorable. You have no idea how many millions of people would kill, literally kill to have the right which you couldn't care less about. It would be less reprehensible if people like you didn't vote and didn't complain. But that's never the case. I'm sure you'll be bitching about mayoral term limits or MTA payroll taxes tomorrow. Jackasses. middleclassUSfamily Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:36:47 -0500 Not voting is also a way of saying something. Who says we don't live in an oligarchy? That's what it seems like to me. I've gone along with the charade for decades -- but no longer. mobeer4don Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:18:28 -0500 Maybe it was just a lack of better choice due to the fact that no sane person would want to be president during the current shitstorm that was clearly on the horizon in 2007-2008. Assassin Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:00:01 -0500 <i>The odds are that you did not vote today. If you are anything like us, not voting is a triumph of sense over propaganda. We've received a bunch of emails from friends and concerned citizens urging us to vote this way or that, for one politician or his doppelganger. Some have even implored us to vote regardless of which candidate we favor, out of some sense of civic duty. Yet we didn't vote. And neither did most of you.</i> Maybe most of us didn't vote because it's an odd-numbered year? That would explain it better than the supposed "irrationality" of voting. AJ58 Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:58:04 -0500 Great post, John. "Voting can also be counter-productive, which is what makes those campaigns urging people to vote so destructive. If you are only so slightly informed about an election that you need to be convinced to vote, your preferences are likely to be ill-informed. You'll vote according to heuristics--ethnicity, party lines, for familiar names--that political operatives can predict and exploit. We're probably all better off if we leave the voting to the informed and committed." I wasn't a McCain supporter - however the above isa four-sentence explanation of why Barack Obama got elected. It's also why there's a substantial chance he'll be a one-term president. Voting does matter Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:47:51 -0500 Great, more lame, linear, myopic, self-absorbed thought from a BI hack. Of course voting matters. What the f$ck have so many people in our Armed Services died for over the last two and a half centuries? One reason is so that we don't succumb to dictators, oligarchs, plutarchs and outright totalitarianism. What doesn't matter more often than not are your choice of candidates. In our easily bought out political system, the primaries are where the real differences should be made, yet, unfortunately, there very often isn't a real choice by national election day. However, when you have the chance to vote for someone like Ron Paul, or against someone like Chris Dodd, then your vote absolutely matters a great deal. You've provided no reasonable argument against voting besides just being too apathetic and lazy. Try and rationalize it however you want, but like your back-ass-wards view on insider trading, you are just being a transparent, attention-seeking contrarian. YT Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:30:08 -0500 I am doing something. I am trying to get information so I can run for office in 2010. My idea is cut spending on just about everything. I'd like to reduce regulation, change the tax system and get the government out of everything. My government doesn't do anything for the people, it provides an avenue for people to do things for themselves. "Ask not what your country can do for you..." In the meantime, I am holding down my job and I will be voting as soon as the work day is over. The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:35:13 -0500 Thanks, tool. Voting is a lazy, cynical way of pretending you give a shit. You're such a bloody patriot, go out and do something real rather than punching holes in a card and ignoring the simple math behind the fact that it doesn't matter. The Dude Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:32:10 -0500 Thanks for the horseshit, b, you tool. John Carney Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:31:14 -0500 I really don't think it is fair to equate not voting with apathy. But I will admit that I am pretty indifferent about today's election in New York City. And I suspect most New Yorkers are. YT Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:27:36 -0500 The answer isn't apathy. Apathy destroys, maims and kills freedom. Apathy is what destroyed the Roman Empire and the Greek Empire. Apathy isn't the answer. If you don't have enough knowledge to vote for somebody, go out and get the information. Then go vote! John Carney, that is the worst advice I have ever heard from somebody on this site. For shame. Nick Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:24:03 -0500 Voting makes sense only when you want to influence the outcome of the election. If you don't don't see much difference between candidates. Or all of the candidates want to do something that you are against. Then voting in such an election doesn't make sense. The problem with voting for candidates whom you don't really support is that more votes give greater legitimacy to the elected candidate. And in a democracy, greater legitimacy often translates into more authoritarian rule. A politician who gets a big majority in an election often feels that he has political capital to spend. Which is a euphemism for screwing the country and the people a little. b Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:16:44 -0500 John, spoken like the spoiled 30 something you are. So you would agree with Bobby Knight here: [sportsillustrated_cnn_com] David Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:15:31 -0500 ...That's what she said. Here's another one: size doesn't really matter. rob Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:10:45 -0500 Damn I've never felt so good about not voting before. Thanks!