[Luzette]

Originally Posted by tjay

May vote this way for President, still undecided. Will vote Libertarian for Senator, I agree with his ideas on the Federal Reserve.

I understand why people think this is 'throwing away your vote', but if people don't start doing this, we'll always have a two party system that gets nothing accomplished. Voting for one of the two parties is to me saying 'I have no hope of anything ever changing'. The hamster has been spinning on the wheel forever, when will it end???

I completely understand your point of view. I just can't in this election personally justify a third party vote.

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by tjay

May vote this way for President, still undecided. Will vote Libertarian for Senator, I agree with his ideas on the Federal Reserve.

I understand why people think this is 'throwing away your vote', but if people don't start doing this, we'll always have a two party system that gets nothing accomplished. Voting for one of the two parties is to me saying 'I have no hope of anything ever changing'. The hamster has been spinning on the wheel forever, when will it end???

Just find out who:
* Wants to repeal Citizens United. Not Mitt for sure.
* Hates the coin-operated government and wants to get special-interest money out of the process.
* Has the potential to actually win an election.
It's the progressive democrats. Why do you think the corporate right-wing hates them so?
Libertarian have some of the same goals, but the wealthy corporate power structure fears them not at all.

Jesse Ventura

Jesse Ventura calls Mitt Romney 'another Gordon Gekko' - Talking Liberally with Stephanie Miller // Current TV

[tjay]

Yeah I see your guys points...I just hate that its that way. I suppose I should be grateful to even have 2 to vote for....or that I get to vote at all.

Grrrrrr!!!! :}

[tjay]

I just saw Bill Maher in Detroit last night....not that it swayed my vote but it was d*mn funny...

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by tjay

Yeah I see your guys points...I just hate that its that way. I suppose I should be grateful to even have 2 to vote for....or that I get to vote at all.

Grrrrrr!!!! :}

Just get progressive democrats in congressional power, then hold their feet to the fire. They will pick up aspects of Greens, Libertarians, traditional conservative (read "honest") business practices. This is one step.
Voting third party will just steal votes from them and give more power to big money.

Originally Posted by tjay

I just saw Bill Maher in Detroit last night....not that it swayed my vote but it was d*mn funny...

I am envious.

[tuebor]

I'm voting for Obama because I think he's the best choice, unlike 2004 when my vote was mainly a vote against Bush rather than a vote for Kerry. But I would like to see a viable third party emerge, regardless of its ideology.

Obama's almost certainly going to win Michigan. So whether you're an extreme leftist or a conservative of any kind, if you don't like Obama and you live in Michigan, you might as well vote 3rd party.

I don't see how any true conservative can be happy about voting for Romney. Romney for you guys is even worse than Kerry was for us. And in 2004, Michigan was in play, so those of us who loathed Bush as much as you loathe Obama couldn't afford to throw our votes away on a third candidate. But Michigan is not in play this time, so you wouldn't be throwing your votes away. Why not have the satisfaction of voting for someone you actually like and sending a message to the party establishment?

If you're a doctrinaire leftist, you probably don't need any convincing from me to vote Green or whatever.

[peppermint]

I always vote for the candidates that best represent my POV, not for the lesser of two evils. Hence, I'll be voting third party as usual.

[canudigit]

Originally Posted by tuebor

I'm voting for Obama because I think he's the best choice, unlike 2004 when my vote was mainly a vote against Bush rather than a vote for Kerry. But I would like to see a viable third party emerge, regardless of its ideology.

Obama's almost certainly going to win Michigan. So whether you're an extreme leftist or a conservative of any kind, if you don't like Obama and you live in Michigan, you might as well vote 3rd party.

I don't see how any true conservative can be happy about voting for Romney. Romney for you guys is even worse than Kerry was for us. And in 2004, Michigan was in play, so those of us who loathed Bush as much as you loathe Obama couldn't afford to throw our votes away on a third candidate. But Michigan is not in play this time, so you wouldn't be throwing your votes away. Why not have the satisfaction of voting for someone you actually like and sending a message to the party establishment?

If you're a doctrinaire leftist, you probably don't need any convincing from me to vote Green or whatever.

Nice try, but people just aren't this stupid. Depending on which poll you read, Michigan is indeed very much in play this time, so I can see why you would come here and try to hoodwink Republicans into voting for a lost cause third party candidate. The widest spread I have seen in any Michigan poll is four points, and others have it at a dead heat. I live in SE Michigan, and away from Detroit (except the suburbs, many of which are much more conservative than the city proper and could go either way), the support for Romney is very strong. I spent much of Monday driving through counties such as Monroe, Lenawee, Hillsdale, and yes, even parts of Washtenaw (which outside of AA has many areas that are quite conservative) and counted roughly 10 Romney yard signs for every one Obama sign, so that tells me that Romney does have solid support here in Michigan, and we're even talking the SE portion of the state, which is traditionally one of the bluest areas.

It won't be over until after the election. If Obama wins Michigan, so be it, but don't just assume it will happen without educating yourself on how people here really feel, not just the union folks who follow the party line in spite of the fact that their unions have been rendered almost useless over the past four years. (why doesn't Obama brag about a starting line worker at any of the Big Three seeing their hourly wage cut from $28/hr. to $14.50/hr. since the bailout?) Michigan has a lot of values voters and people who are just plain tired of seeing their dwindling paychecks raped to "spread the wealth" to those who won't work.

[tuebor]

I hope you're right, canudigit. I hope people are not stupid, and that they will see that will see that blind partisan loyalty does not serve the country well.

Polls, shmolls. Recent fluctuations mask the underlying facts. Everyone who works for GM, Chrysler, or their suppliers, including management, owes their job to Obama, while Romney would have left most of the the US auto industry to the mercies of private finance, which under the circumstances would have meant liquidation. As for unions, they haven't been rendered useless in the last four years, they've been *under assault* for the last four years, and they're fighting back. A majority of autoworkers, teachers, and other public employees will vote for Obama. That's a win.

But if you do believe the polls, then Obama still wins with women, blacks, latinos, gays, and college graduates, and splits Catholics. Again, that's a win here in Michigan. The margin will not be wide, but it will be wide enough, so blinkered left-wing ideologues who can't grasp the value of Obama's pragmatism should go ahead and vote Green. Genuine pacifists should vote Green or Natural Law.

"Values voters" above all ought to vote 3rd party. Romney has shown that he will say anything and take whatever position is expedient for his own advancement. Values voters should check out the Constitution Party.

It won't be a blowout, but Obama's going to win in Michigan. The Romney campaign has to know this. Their recent efforts here are just a diversion to suck Obama campaign resources out of Ohio. Ohio really is in play, and Romney can't win without it.

[JoulesMSU]

I'm a little confused about how write-in works. Will a vote for Gary Johnson be counted even though he isn't on the ballot? If not, I may just vote for Jill Stein even though I'd prefer Johnson, but I don't want my vote to actually be "wasted" by voting for someone who is ineligible to be counted.