Balance of Power

(Political) partying for dummies

Election Day is finally upon us. All of the hysteria from the mass media culminates today, when the voters elect a new president. The trouble is just that, however. The media seems to think this is a sort of game, and that the two major parties are competing for votes as if we were just points, which is absurd. For a while, elections have been all about two giants, fighting each other to their political deaths, each one hoping he will emerge victorious. In the process, voters end up finding out all sorts of unpleasant things about each of the candidates, and so end up disliking both. There is always one candidate, however, that people dislike more than the other, so they go to the voting booths to vote against the candidate they dislike more. This has been a dominant trend for some time now, and it is a real turn-off for many citizens.

Why vote against a candidate? If you don't like either of the main candidates, there is no reason a sane person should feel obligated to vote against the one they hate more. That makes little sense; you are still voting for someone you don't like in the end. In addition, in our political system, your vote symbolizes an endorsement for a candidate's positions.

Knowing this to be a dominant trend in our society today, I went out and conducted a poll in order to find out what the general views of WPI students are. The poll consists of 100 people, comprised of 23 students from each class and 8 professors. The results did, in fact, reinforce my beliefs. As you can see below, an appalling 39% of us choose to vote for Gore not because we like him, but because we don't want Bush to win. This just makes very little sense. Why do we endorse the candidates we don't like? The answer is quite simple, really: because the media has convinced us that this is a game; a competition, where the public is brainwashed into thinking that our lives will be ruined if the candidate we hate the most gets elected. I say "rubbish!" There is little substance in voting against someone.

Many a time, while wandering the campus, I have noticed supporters of Ralph Nader trying to convert people. It is clear that many of us are weary of this tired two-party system. Yet, too many people seem to believe that voting for a third-party means throwing your vote down the toilet. Not so! It should be noted that a vote for a third party is in fact worth more than a standard republican or democrat vote. Many changes in this country occurred because of people voting for third parties.

Time and again we have all seen the talking heads in television having "serious" discussions about Bush and Gore, while the other third-party candidates get the comic book version. The media seems to think they can use the public airwaves to pick and choose which candidates people should know about, while the rest are left to their own devices, garnering what support they can through their own hard work. Anyone willing to look at the third parties is bound to find a candidate they actually like, as opposed to a candidate they dislike less, as is the case with the 2-party system. It should be noted that despite the fact that Pat Buchanan raised millions of dollars and received multiple times more press coverage, Libertarian candidate Harry Browne somehow managed to pull up to his stead. One can only imagine what would happen if Browne were given a fair shot.

If you are in fact weary of this 2 party system, don't vote for Bush simply because you don't like Gore. That is absurd. And voting for Gore because you disdain the religious right isn't anything short of silly. You are not voting for a candidate in such cases. You are voting against what you hate, and that isn't necessarily for the better. You are still endorsing a candidate whose views may not be your own. By voting for them, you tragically send an endorsement for their policies. If, in fact, you are among those who fell let down by our current system, you should know that we still live in an electorate state. By voting for a third party like the Libertarians, Greens, Reform, Natural Law or Constitutional, you are sending an unmistakable message to the nation that you are displeased with the current system. Your vote will not be ignored, because politicians will look at it and realize that they will continue to lose supporters unless they get their act together.

This, of course, does not apply to everyone. But if it does, then don't commit the injustice of voting against someone. As Harry Browne put it, "You'll just be voting for whomever can take you to Hell at the slowest possible rate. The destination is still the same, though!"

An Informal Poll

This is a poll of 100 people at WPI. Of the 100 people, there are 23 people from each class and 8 professors.

Although an appalling number of people voted against Bush, there is nonetheless a strong third-party sentiment at WPI, with 29 third-party votes.

More stats:

Freshmen mostly voted against Bush.

Sophomores typically voted for Gore, for Bush, or were not sure.

Juniors showed a strong Nader support base.

Seniors were mostly for Nader and Browne.

Many professors voted against Bush.