Vote the Candidate, NOT the Party!
I am really getting annoyed with the ads from political parties and their various supporters. The Democrats want you to vote all Democratic and the Republicans all Republican in the upcoming elections. I believe in voting for the right candidate. If that happens to be a Republican, I will vote for that candidate. If another position would best be served by a Democrat, then that is how I will vote. An Independent may be better in one instance and a Green Party candidate in another.
No single political party has a monopoly on the ‘best candidates.’ We have been led to believe that we must have party loyalty. Why? There are people with good ideas in all of the political parties and there are those with bad ideas or, it seems lately, no ideas. There is no law that says that if you are registered in one of the major parties that you ‘must’ vote for all of the candidates in that party. Perhaps that is one of our major political failings. We often fail to give those who do not quite fit either party’s mold a chance to enter the political process. As a result, we have grown accustomed to mediocre politicians who are unwilling to buck party leadership. Now, it is hard to tell where one really stands on the issues as party distinctions have become increasingly blurred.
If you are a registered Republican the powers that be expect you to vote for all of the candidates with the Elephant after their name. How presumptuous can you get? Or, you could vote for all of the Jackasses. I vote for some mix and match, depending on who “I” think, will do the best job.
And speaking of the best job isn’t it about time we got some leadership? In the past few years the only leadership we have had has been being a leader in saying “no:” No to leadership on global warming; No to leadership on stopping the spread of arms to insurgents in third world countries; No to actions to end genocide; No talking to our allies; and, No to talking to anyone with whom we disagree. This is leadership in the wrong direction and I hope that voters send a message to Washington that American citizens do not want to end up like ancient Rome.
It has been said that “consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” And yet, those who lead our political parties ask us to vote a consistent and straight party ticket. What does this tell you about the minds of party leaders? I certainly urge all Americans to vote in November but, I strongly urge that you vote for the best candidate, regardless of political affiliation.
