At 07:29 PM 9/12/2000 -0500, zeb haradon wrote:
>> most of which is very bad (we have social security, legalized birth
>> control, a graduated income tax, a union-friendly government, a minimum
>> wage.. etc. I'm not sure which of these were official Socialist
>> positions but I'm sure they are all things most Socialists of the period
>> would have supported or been concerned about)
I have to ask - what's "very bad" about "legalized" birth control? Once
upon a time in America you could be arrested if unmarried and attempting to
buy a condom. Do you mean abortion?
>>. If people had voted consistenly for major parties, this would not have
>>happened. And if a Libertarian candidate consistently got 3%-10% of the
>>vote, and if (s)he ever broke the double digits, this certainly would
>>lead to a Libertarianization of both wings of the Republicrat party. If
>>you voted for Browne, you would be contributing to this. I'd say that
>>realistically I wouldn't even expect him to get 1% of the vote.
>>Nevertheless, one individual's vote for him is another grain of sand on
>>the scale. Your vote may be worth 0.0001% of the future policies of the
>>main parties.
>>Voting for either of the two main parties however, has absolutely zero
>>influence. If you vote for Bush or Gore, your vote is 100% worthless
>>and there's not even the slightest remotest chance it will contribute to
>>anything. If your vote were the deciding vote, the vote would be close
>>enough that it would go to congress and they would decide it.
It appears you are saying in the first paragraph that if everyone voted for
the Republicrats or Demicans, the socialist agenda would never have been
adopted by the mainstream - and then say that voting for either party now
has zero influence.
There is a slight, but significant pull of votes from the Republicans to
the Libertarians and Reform parties - but no symmetrical loss to the
Democrats - they get the labor vote, the teacher vote, etc. regardless of
what idiocy they expound. Perot indeed did spoil the election for the
Rebublicans - and we got Klinton.
If not for this, I would vote Libertarian in the next election - but I
consider the possibility of getting Gored just tooo scary - so I am voting
for Bush. Perhaps the state elections that bring in Libertarians - and
there should be at least a few who win, or show large voter turnout - will
moderate his and the next congress' thinking.
Chuck Kuecker
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