[quote=teacherSD]In an attempt to bring the topic back to your original post I will give my opinion of your original question.[/quote]
Teacher, thanks for the thoughtful on topic post!
[quote=teacherSD]I had a politics professor in college who said that not voting was a waste.[/quote]
I tend to agree. Seems to me if you don’t vote the message you are sending is I can’t be bothered. But that’s not the message I want to send. I want to send the message, “Damn right I care, I just can’t stand the choices you’re offering and I’m fed up with it.”
[quote=teacherSD]The professor disagreed and said a better form of protest was to go to the voting booth and turn in a blank ballot.[/quote]
I think if this was publicized it could be very successful. But in today’s environment, I think it would just be taken as, “Look at this idiot, he’s too stupid to fill out a simple ballot.” If there was an organized movement to turn in blank ballots as a protest, then I’d do that in a heartbeat.
[quote=teacherSD]After the 2000 presidential election (Bush v. Gore) there was a lot of attention on which ballots “count” and I seem to remember that blank ballots are just thrown out. They do not keep track of the number of people who turn in blank ballots.[/quote]
I think this reflects the current attitude, turning in a blank ballot will be ignored. So that doesn’t seem such a good option.
[quote=teacherSD]I personally have started voting for third party candidates. If something like the Ross Perot effect happens, I don’t care. If Clinton wins because people voted for Perot instead of Bush and that bothers me, then I should have voted for Bush.[/quote]
This is pretty much my opinion. Thus the title of this thread challenging anyone to put forward arguments against this strategy. (That Clinton good, vs Clinton bad argument was less than successful guys)
[quote=teacherSD]Another possibility is to vote only for nonpartisan offices. However, I would be afraid that my whole ballot would be thrown out if it isn’t complete. I don’t know if this is true. Does anyone else know?[/quote]
I’m pretty sure that partially voted ballots still count for the races where ballots are cast.
But my problem with voting the “non-partisan offices” only is that they really are not non-partisan. The party name doesn’t appear on the ballot, but usually most the support for the candidates, (the money for those signs hung at busy intersections) comes from the parties or from connections the candidate has made at party meetings. These are more training grounds for people who want to become candidates for “partisan offices” later. So, in a way these offices are not “non-partisan” they are “unrevealed-partisan” offices. And the candidates are merely lining up to get training in the whole “I give you campaign funds, you trade favors” system.
