US Elections

[Andrew]

The same as Al Gores Stone face lost him that election.

[jav barri]

well i just think bill hicks got it right "no i'm voting for the puppet on the right, no wait i'm voting for the puppet on the left, wait theres one person holding the puppets"

[thomas]

Scytale, do you watch Red vs. Blue?

;D

how did you know?

[Inoculator9]

Kerry is nothing like Bush Edric, in so many ways. Saying they are alike is just intellectually lazy IMO ;) Kerry is anti-death penalty, pro-choice, supports allowing gay marriage, etc... while push is pro-death penalty, pro-life, and supports the most idiotic thing I've ever heard of: a constitutional ban on gay marriage because it would destroy the fabric of our country. Yep, the country that without gays all ready has a divorce rate of 50% :P

[Emperor Harkonnen]

I think and hope Bush will become president

[Wolf]

Scytale; cockbite and fucktards were giveaways; I can usually spot a term coined by either Spc. Church or Pvt. Griff. Though, I have to say, my favorite character is the Red Sergeant.

With regard to the US election; if you support Dean, you might as well support Ralph Nader -- the man is liberal, but he has also committed his life to civic good, not politics. He has made the distinction between the two. Even though Dean had a better chance of being elected than Nader did.

[Edric O]

With regard to the US election; if you support Dean, you might as well support Ralph Nader -- the man is liberal, but he has also committed his life to civic good, not politics. He has made the distinction between the two. Even though Dean had a better chance of being elected than Nader did.

That's exactly the point. Yes, I'd support Nader over Dean (or Kerry, or anyone else) any day, but Nader isn't running for the Democrats, and he has no chance in hell to win the presidency.

And in order to kick Bush out of the White House, we need a united front. I strongly advise you against voting for third party candidates, even if they are hundreds of times better than Kerry.

But elections aside, Ralph Nader and Noam Chomsky are the two American public figures I admire most.

[ordos45]

I saw Bush's first campaign ad this morning at 6:30AM while eating breakfast.

[Wolf]

Edric, I understand your point of view, and I'm not even saying I disagree with it. However, there is something that bothers me about the fact that some people are advising others not to vote for the man they truly believe they should be President because they feel that the currect president must be kicked out above all other priorities. It is as if the desire to throw Bush out of office has trumped the desire to put a man into the White House who is believed as being able to do the best job. I ask you, which is more important? I'm not even saying that Kerry isn't capable, but he's a far cry from Nader in some peoples' opinions. Emiliano Zapata once said that it is better to live on your feet than do die on your knees. A friend of mine, who is extremely liberal, quotes this every time I tell him that the war in Iraq was okay with a UN mandate or that gay marriages should be allowed, but under the title of civil unions; concession, to him, is wrong. Why make a compromise for what you believe is right?

That's mainly me playing Devil's advocate, Edric, I understand your point, and I'm not disagreeing with it -- just presenting an alterante philosophy to voting. I was raised in a household that dislikes declaring who they are voting for, and its a philosophy I agree with, so, I can't give anyone any definate answers. I apologize.

[Edric O]

I am a man of principle, and it is my policy to never compromise with the enemy. But I will compromise with my allies (anyone on the Left), whenever it is necessary to build a united front. History shows that being too rigid and stubborn can have disastrous consequences.

I will give you just one example, from the history of the communist movement: In 1933, the KPD (the German Communist Party) was the strongest, the best organized and the most popular Communist Party outside of the USSR. Marxism had been extremely popular in Germany for decades, and the fact that capitalism was in ruins made it even more popular than usual. The KPD followed marxism-leninism, while the SPD (the German Social Democratic Party; the predecessor of today's SPD) followed classical marxism. The SPD won the elections, but it did not hold the majority of seats all by itself. It needed to form a coalition government. The KPD came in second, and it had exactly the number of seats needed by the SPD to create such a government. A SPD/KPD coalition could have brought Germany out of the crisis, and perhaps lay the foundations of a powerful socialist state - one which might have even helped the Russians to overthrow stalinism. But the KPD refused to give any thought to the idea of a coalition. They were proud communists, and they wanted to stick with their principles no matter what - even an alliance with the social democrats (who were marxists, but not leninists) was out of the question. So neither the SPD nor the KPD entered the government.

At the other end of the spectrum, two other parties - the Conservatives and the Nazis - cared less about principles and more about realpolitik. So they got a number of other minor right-wing parties to join them and formed a governing coalition together. Most of the ministers in the new government were conservative. But the nazis got their chancellor: Adolf Hitler.

A few months later, the first party banned by Hitler was the KPD. The communists who were so proud of not having compromised on their principles ended up in nazi concentration camps. Had they been less rigid, they could have prevented Hitler from coming to power.

So you see, it's always good to stick to your principles, but not to the point of playing into the hands of your enemy by refusing to compromise with your allies.

[thomas]

kerry is a decorated war hero, bush was well just Awol

[Gobalopper]

There is no evidence of that Scytale.

[SurlyPIG]

But the timing and manner of his departure from the military was certainly questionable.

[Gobalopper]

It may have been but he didn't go AWOL.

[thomas]

please watch this:

http://www.ericblumrich.com/topgun.html

YowZa! :O

[Anathema]

Edric, voting for Kerry solely for the reason he's the best chance of getting Bush out of office is a bad thing. It only further strengthens the two party system. If more people voted for the man (or woman) they like best rather then vote strategicly America could have a third party president one day.

I wouldn't vote for Kerry because by my standards he presents himself as a right winger. I say "presents as" because I wouldn't be surprised if he's actually more left wing when it comes to certain things, but doesn't show it for electoral motives. That's a problem many countries have, candidates only present views that draw many voters into their camp. What I'd like to see is a polarisation of politics, when public figures actually say what they think, like Nader.