Trump, Clinton......

[4T2]

Wow, this got intense!

But to those saying they aren't voting! I BEG YOU TO RECONSIDER!!! I don't care how you vote, be it for Hillary or for an independent candidate but please go out and vote for anyone but Trump. Apathy is not the answer.

All of us up here in Canada (and the rest of the world) are seriously worried about the state of the US right now.

[Eskimo Brother]

Wow, this got intense!

But to those saying they aren't voting! I BEG YOU TO RECONSIDER!!! I don't care how you vote, be it for Hillary or for an independent candidate but please go out and vote for anyone but Trump. Apathy is not the answer.

All of us up here in Canada (and the rest of the world) are seriously worried about the state of the US right now.

Could not have said that better, and I firmly stand behind you 4T2.

[iwinthings]

Hmm. I think this response says more about you than it does about me. Do you really believe that everyone can be so easily pigeonholed into one faction or other? Don't worry about it though, unfortunately you're far from alone in that belief.

Even though politics in the United States certainly appears irreparably polarized, that doesn't mean that there are no longer any centrists out there.

I'll submit that the majority of the population are in fact centrists, and that's why both of these candidate's unfavorables are so high. It's because their favorables are only coming from the extremes of their respective factions, a relatively small segment. Both are alienating unaffiliated voters, one for being disingenuous and unlikable, the other a shameless provocateur and apparent sociopath.

FYI, I've never been either registered with either political party, and I've never voted along party lines. I am one of those mythical centrists that you hear about. We do actually exist.

I don't think pigeonholing people is helpful in any way - that's exactly my point. I wasn't the one that started labeling groups of people as extremists or as fringe groups.

- - - Updated - - -

Wow, this got intense!

But to those saying they aren't voting! I BEG YOU TO RECONSIDER!!! I don't care how you vote, be it for Hillary or for an independent candidate but please go out and vote for anyone but Trump. Apathy is not the answer.

All of us up here in Canada (and the rest of the world) are seriously worried about the state of the US right now.

I fully support the choice of those who do not vote as long as they are not doing it out of apathy but because they feel there are better ways to use their time as citizens of their country. It's a perfectly reasonable decision to make.

[lucafen4]

Wow, this got intense!

But to those saying they aren't voting! I BEG YOU TO RECONSIDER!!! I don't care how you vote, be it for Hillary or for an independent candidate but please go out and vote for anyone but Trump. Apathy is not the answer.

All of us up here in Canada (and the rest of the world) are seriously worried about the state of the US right now.

****Unless you are republican and your morals won't allow you to vote any other way. Stay away from the polls and DO NOT VOTE TRUMP!***

That's my one asterisk exception to not voiting

[4T2]

I fully support the choice of those who do not vote as long as they are not doing it out of apathy but because they feel there are better ways to use their time as citizens of their country. It's a perfectly reasonable decision to make.

I don't know if it works the same in the US as it does in Canada, but in Canada we track spoiled ballots (although it's tough to track down the numbers for this). I have never cast a vote for an actual candidate but I spoil my ballot for every election I'm eligible to vote in. It may be a useless motion on my part, but if all the people who say they wish there was a "none of the above" option, went out and spoiled their ballots, perhaps we would get some true democratic reform.

Do they allow write-ins in American voting? What kind of message would it send if anywhere from 40-60% of the American voters just wrote None of the Above on their ballot this year?

[iwinthings]

I don't know if it works the same in the US as it does in Canada, but in Canada we track spoiled ballots (although it's tough to track down the numbers for this). I have never cast a vote for an actual candidate but I spoil my ballot for every election I'm eligible to vote in. It may be a useless motion on my part, but if all the people who say they wish there was a "none of the above" option, went out and spoiled their ballots, perhaps we would get some true democratic reform.

Do they allow write-ins in American voting? What kind of message would it send if anywhere from 40-60% of the American voters just wrote None of the Above on their ballot this year?

I'm not sure what they allow in the US. I find the 'if you don't vote you're less of a citizen!' narrative pretty funny when most of the people who go vote do shit all with the rest of their lives.

[rtstr]

I'm not sure what they allow in the US. I find the 'if you don't vote you're less of a citizen!' narrative pretty funny when most of the people who go vote do shit all with the rest of their lives.

You can write in candidates. And I totally agree that the "if you don't vote you're a bad person" stance is utterly ridiculous. It drives me crazy. It seems like these political nuts get more fired up over "voter apathy" than they do about real issues like poverty and hate and pedophiles stalking the streets. Kind of funny what an election year does to people.

[4T2]

I'm not sure what they allow in the US. I find the 'if you don't vote you're less of a citizen!' narrative pretty funny when most of the people who go vote do shit all with the rest of their lives.

You can write in candidates. And I totally agree that the "if you don't vote you're a bad person" stance is utterly ridiculous. It drives me crazy. These political nuts get more fired up over "political apathy" than they do about pedophiles stalking the streets.

I don't think that not voting makes you a lesser citizen or a bad person. However, it is part of your civic duty to vote when you live in a "democracy" (even if that's a fallacy for what we have). Choosing not to vote can be justifiable but it's definitely not the option that is going to contribute to a positive future for you. Much the same way that I often choose to have a beer or 6 after work to alleviate my stress. It's justified but there are better options (like exercise) out there and it may even be leading to long term irreparable damage down the road.

"A man who claims he takes no interest in politics is like a drowning man who insists he has no interest in water"

[iwinthings]

I don't think that not voting makes you a lesser citizen or a bad person.However, it is part of your civic duty to vote when you live in a "democracy"(even if that's a fallacy for what we have). Choosing not to vote can be justifiable but it's definitely not the option that is going to contribute to a positive future for you. Much the same way that I often choose to have a beer or 6 after work to alleviate my stress. It's justified but there are better options (like exercise) out there and it may even be leading to long term irreparable damage down the road.

"A man who claims he takes no interest in politics is like a drowning man who insists he has no interest in water"

I don't agree with almost everything you're saying here, but I am in the minority and I'm okay with that.

[The Iron Sheik]

I am not interested in politics. They don't affect me in any way.

[LawMan]

I don't know if it works the same in the US as it does in Canada, but in Canada we track spoiled ballots (although it's tough to track down the numbers for this). I have never cast a vote for an actual candidate but I spoil my ballot for every election I'm eligible to vote in. It may be a useless motion on my part, but if all the people who say they wish there was a "none of the above" option, went out and spoiled their ballots, perhaps we would get some true democratic reform.

Do they allow write-ins in American voting? What kind of message would it send if anywhere from 40-60% of the American voters just wrote None of the Above on their ballot this year?

Lots of interesting comm in this thread. All I'll say I I DO think that general , will be much closer tha people think. It's ultimately a two horse race and Trump has th GOP endorsement.

FYI, in Canada there is a key distinction between a "spoiled ballot" and a "refused ballot". A spoiled ballot is one that is incorrectly marked or otherwise not recordable. The spoiled ballot number is recorded to ensure total ballot number is accounte for. A refused ballot occurs when a voter show up to the polls and refuses/declines to accept their ballot. That number is kept separately. A spoiled ballot indicates a voter that didnot vote correctly, a refused ballot indicates a voter saying "none of the above.

[iwinthings]

I am not interested in politics. They don't affect me in any way.

Edited to not bite. Thanks 4T2

[4T2]

I am not interested in politics. They don't affect me in any way.

This may have been your biggest troll post to date (and that's saying something!)... but I'm not going to bite.

[iwinthings]

This may have been your biggest troll post to date (and that's saying something!)... but I'm not going to bite.

Oh man, you're so right. Editing my post now..

[4T2]

Lots of interesting comm in this thread. All I'll say I I DO think that general , will be much closer tha people think. It's ultimately a two horse race and Trump has th GOP endorsement.

FYI, in Canada there is a key distinction between a "spoiled ballot" and a "refused ballot". A spoiled ballot is one that is incorrectly marked or otherwise not recordable. The spoiled ballot number is recorded to ensure total ballot number is accounte for. A refused ballot occurs when a voter show up to the polls and refuses/declines to accept their ballot. That number is kept separately. A spoiled ballot indicates a voter that didnot vote correctly, a refused ballot indicates a voter saying "none of the above.

I did not know that you could refuse your ballot! So apparently I've been going about my form of protest all wrong. This is information that needs to be put out there with a massive campaign to let people know it's a viable option!