I voted weeks ago (permanent absentee) and I don't understand why anyone would ever choose to wait in line to do it in person at the last minute. Are you massochists?
Please stop telling me to vote no on 8. Do you honestly think that there's anyone who reads your LJ who would vote yes? Seriously? Seriously? I know it's fun to get worked up and rant at the choir over things you can't affect, but come on, shut up.
Just about everyone on my friends list who has posted about the election in the past few weeks has trotted out the same old platitude that goes: "I don't care what you vote for, but please vote! Even if you are completely uninformed and/or will vote to undermine fundamental principles of our democracy, please vote!" Shut up. You're an idiot.
That Spider Jerusalem quote.
voting
I sure hate Livejournal on election days.
Tags: big brother, firstperson
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77 Responses:
Please stop telling me to vote no on 8. Do you honestly think that there's anyone who reads your LJ who would vote yes?
Actually, in my case, that has been true somewhat regularly in the past. I have an (now ex-)friend, for example, who actively campaigned for the Federal Marriage Amendment, which is why she's now an ex-friend.
But mostly I was telling people to donate money to the "no" side, which is somewhat different.
It's crazy how we can sometimes have friends that don't happen to agree with us on political issues!
I think at the point when we're talking about removing someone's basic rights, it ceases to become a political issue. I am all for breaking up with a friend if that friend carries grossly discriminatory beliefs (racist, homophobic, etc.).
I STRONGLY support Obama, Gay Rights/Marriage, and Abortion Rights, but I have friends that oppose all 3 and I'm ok with that.
I'll take someone voting for someone else for President, but voting to strip my friends' and loved-ones' civil rights is a friendship-breaker.
It's crazy how different people have different criteria for what they'll accept from their friends?
I wait until the last minute just in case a candidate flips the fuck out and sets his wife on fire.
There are still a few hours left... we can hope.
And then you vote for him, right?
Depends on his stance re Roe v Wade.
Were they for hangars before they were against them?
Just about everyone on my friends list who has posted about the election in the past few weeks has trotted out the same old platitude that goes: "I don't care what you vote for, but please vote! Even if you are completely uninformed and/or will vote to undermine fundamental principles of our democracy, please vote!" Shut up. You're an idiot.
Thank you, dear god.
I also approve this paragraph 9,000%.
I'd like to be able to kick all those sanctimonious voters going all out for Obama this year in the nuts. The really important shit went down in 2000 and 2004. Obama is running for a janitorial position, cleaning up after the Bush orgy.
So the real question for voters is whether Obama or McCain would be a better janitor for the post Bush-orgy cleanup. I can see that.
Doesn't change my vote, but I can see that point of view.
"My god, it's dripping from the ceiling"
Go on, I can vaguely recognise this as a quote from a film/TV programme, but Google's never heard of it.
I dunno, just seemed like the appropriate thing to say :)
Exactly. Obama's looking sane and stable, he's probably the better recovery counselor, but the oooh we're changing the world stuff is BS.
The world changed with the aftermath of the 2000 election debacle. A lot of people eligible to act then, didn't, a lot of people going all googly over Obama passed on Gore because he was "stiff" and Kerry because they were "afraid of change," and now they're all about how world-changing their lazy-ass vote is. I'm sick of hearing about some old guy voting for the first time in this election: thanks a lot, pal. You made a difference already, by not voting.
Sorry. I'm surprised that this election has me pissed off about the last two, all over again. I wonder whether anyone else feels that way. Blame and resentment, so unfashionable in our self-esteem society.
re: 1) I don't trust the USPS, and luckily my polling place is not super impacted. I was in and out within 20 minutes, and it was a pleasant experience connecting with the neighbors.
Here here on the rest of the stuff, though.
I've had HUGE problems with my snail mail lately as well. Missing bills and other important documents for lame places that don't do it electronically. It's been an ongoing ordeal for MONTHS that still is not 100% fixed.
That said, I went this morning, took less than 5mins to get in and out... But... I live in the boonies.
I've seen comments from people who purposefully delayed voting to election day, out of a desire to be out there in the middle of history.
somebody needs a nap and a cookie!
Some of us don't have a choice. I live in an excuse-needed absentee voting state, and I don't have a legal excuse to vote absentee. So I waited in line this morning (admittedly, it was a small line) and voted.
If I lived in a state which provided with some manner of no-excuse-needed early voting, I'd probably have voted weeks ago.
if somebody broke your kneecaps, would that be a legal excuse?
also, i never have to wait in line to vote and you see the absolute weirdest cross-section of the populace in the weirdest state of mind possible when you do it in person. it's like swimming through a ball-pit full of ducks or something- not very comfortable and sometimes pretty noisy, but so surreal you just can't pass it up.
Yes, but I would prefer to stand in line, thank you.
I don't live in a densely populated area. When I voted this morning, the density of voting was about 1/minute. When my girlfriend voted a few hours later, the average voting density was still about 1/minute. That was before noon, and that was about half the "active" voters for my polling site.
Yeah, I voted early too and my FL is clogged with "GO VOTE" entries. -_- ugh.
I whole heartedly agree with paragraph 3. I find it dumb and annoying.
When I wasn't voting absentee I always went to vote before 8 am and there was never a line. But yeah, no reason not to do absentee -- even if you want to wait or don't trust the mail, you can drop it off at city hall on election day.
but come on, shut up.
Shut up. You're an idiot.
Direct and to the point! Well done
Don't vote, it only encourages them.
There was no line, and I had to pick my kid up from school anyway (and he goes to the school where I vote). Maybe once he's out of elementary school and I no longer have a convenient excuse to go there anyway, I'll vote early.
A bunch of my readers, otherwise pretty decent people, were pissed of when I just tried to explain my position not even on prop 8, but on a general definition of marriage, and on why having marriage rights may be important for some people.
So, yes, it happens. What can one do?
I vote absentee because the guy I sell my vote to demands verification.
You could take a picture with your cell phone while in the booth, you know. But then I guess you wouldn't get paid as quickly.
Obligatory (coral-cached) Transmet:
http://www.renmero.com.nyud.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/spider-tells-you-about-voting.jpg
thankz, i hoping someone would share the quote for the rest of us.
think I need to go read the rest of this series...
You really should.
Also on that matter:
http://nagarerutenshi.livejournal.com/292979.html
Lol.
Awesome.
Thank you. What's worse is how self-righteous and persistent they are if you try to tell them that they are being useless and annoying.
Stupidity doesn't generally bother me until it becomes an epidemic. :/
Greg Palast's reasoning isn't particularly compelling, but he says absentee ballots are for suckers:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/greg-palast/7-ways-to-steal-back-your_b_139034.html
I'm a permanent absentee voter also, but I'll be fixing that before the next election. Even though I don't think there's much electioneering in SF or California in general.
There was a guy about 10-20 feet away from my polling place today electioneering. I wasn't certain of the specific distance required, but I'm going to try and find the proper people to call to get him dragged off. I didn't even bother to find out what or whom he's pushing for or against, but I just despise that sort of activity.
1)Eh, I live all the way over at the end of Alemany so I had basically no wait to vote in person. I'm usually the only person other than the volunteers who's even there. I was in and out in maybe 10 minutes.
I do it in person because it lets me procrastinate filling out the form. If I did it absentee I might not actually get it in the mail in time. I also really like getting the sticker.
2)Yes. I'm amazed at what people feel is the constant need to keep harping about it and spending tons and tons of money on ads. You're not going to change anyone's opinion. I can't imagine that someone didn't have their mind made up on this back in... was it June?... when the issue first came up.
3)If you're not going to vote the same way I am stay the fuck home. The only fundamental principle I care about is giving me what I want. That's the only reason we vote to begin with. Anyone who claims otherwise is lying whether it's to you or just to themselves.
In CA, if you vote absentee you can procrastinate just as much as real voters, then drop your ballot off at any polling place. Bonus is that you don't have to line up at your polling place, and it's not evil electronic voting.
There was no line and the polling place was basically the same distance away as the nearest mailbox. I was given the option to use the electronic machine, but nobody there took it.
Also, I don't know, I just prefer the feeling of voting to absentee. I mean, I'm filling out the exact same form, but when you don't have any hassles with it I'd rather do it there.
A friend of mine in the Inner Sunset actually had a polling place in the lobby of his building. Apparently he had a reasonably lengthy wait at around 7 or so in the morning.
Could we turn off the International News while you sort out which muppet is going to be in power? Just come on telly in a week's time and tell us who it is so we non US citizens aren't constantly plastered with all the back stabbing and mud flinging.
And your voting system is confusing.
1)Nope, for the last 5 years my polling place never has a line. I can walk to it from my house. I like doing that. Plus, I'm a procrastinator and haven't always spent the time to learn about all the things I need to vote on until just before election day.
2) Ok, because you said please, and because you've already voted, and because I figured you were against 8 anyway, and also because I don't tell other people how to vote (trying to persuade people, I do that but I don't boss them around), I won't.
3) \/\/
4)"Do not offend the Chair Leg of Truth; it is wise and terrible."?
You sound like you are in dire need of a nap. Or other famously effective stress relief.
I'm thinking he means this one:
"You want to know about voting. I'm here to tell you about voting. Imagine you're locked in a huge underground night-club filled with sinners, whores, freaks and unnameable things that rape pitbulls for fun. And you ain't allowed out until you all vote on what you're going to do tonight. You like to put your feet up and watch "Republican Party Reservation". They like to have sex with normal people using knives, guns, and brand new sexual organs you did not even know existed. So you vote for television, and everyone else, as far as your eye can see, votes to fuck you with switchblades. That's voting. You're welcome."
Hear, hear.
I had one friend who posted to the effect of "un-friend me if you're voting yes on 8".
My immediate reaction was of course, "wow, that's gay."
You know you are sort of preaching to the choir yourself with this post, right?
but otherwise, yeah, +1 on the sentiments
Well no, I'm not at all. As I said, these are not hypothetical complaints.
If I am guilty of not putting a strong enough of a qualifier on my statement, it is due to the presumption that your f-list is a more enlightened group than the general public.
Obviously, the size of the choir among your 2590 readers is smaller than my original estimate.
Please revise my words to read "to the barbershop quartet". :)
Aw, CHEERS! I was waiting for this post of yours!
In addition to forcefully shutting people up... :D
Do you think we should start a fund for all the complainers to get them out of the USA when they have literally threatened (whined on LJ etc) to leave the USA when/if McCain and Para Salin win the ticket?
(raises hand)
Me first! Just give me $10k and I'll be gone to New Zealand quicker than you can say "death of the republic."
Oh please one fucking Peter Jackson film and you're headed towards the Utopia Shire. GTFO :D
I have no idea what any of you are talking about, but I waited in a line today too! It was at the bank. I hope that helps you with your problem!
One reason you would wait in line is so that you don't have a spouse or church group looking over your shoulder while you fill out your ballot.
You may have seen the article with the catholic woman who was voting for Obama but was going to lie to her church about it.
I have to say it's concerning that some people like myself default to mail only.
If I had a spouse who bullied me, it would be hard to come up with a way to vote for someone they didn't believe in. Thankfully I don't have that worry, but lots of people do.
Oregon and Washington are / will soon be all-absentee voting, no polling places at all.
The hard part about making a voting system secure against vote tampering a la Diebold is simultaneously making it impossible to sell or coerce votes. But with absentee ballots, that's a lost cause, so if they're going to give that up I wish they'd just gone to a verifiably secure system.
(I voted in person but there was no line and it's two blocks from my house, so whatever.)
I waited in line cuz It gave me a convenient excuse to leave a meeting early.
"Oh no, I am gonna have to cut this short. I have to drive 60 miles down 5 in the rain so I can vote."
But the beauty of that excuse is that it needn't be true...
my aren't you the cute anti-social cynic! Who--se the cute widdle goth iconoclast? C'mon, smile cutie! You know you love us! Just a liddle widdle smile!
:);)
Fixed.
...said mcity hypocritically.
3. Who was it who said "an uninformed choice is worse than none at all"?
4. What quote?
4. Pick one.
Warren Ellis is pretty much a walking zero-sum game, isn't he? For every Chair Leg of Truth, we also get Gabriel raping Mary. For every Nextwave, God masturbating.
I'm not making those up. Ellis wrote a comic where God masturbated. While flying.
to echo myself earlier in the thread;
I'm thinking he means this one:
"You want to know about voting. I'm here to tell you about voting. Imagine you're locked in a huge underground night-club filled with sinners, whores, freaks and unnameable things that rape pitbulls for fun. And you ain't allowed out until you all vote on what you're going to do tonight. You like to put your feet up and watch "Republican Party Reservation". They like to have sex with normal people using knives, guns, and brand new sexual organs you did not even know existed. So you vote for television, and everyone else, as far as your eye can see, votes to fuck you with switchblades. That's voting. You're welcome."
Wow. Comic books, a bad analogy, phallic objects, and sex all rolled into one. 4chan takes up more of the internet every day.
I completely agree with number 3. Uninformed people should NOT be voting.
Fucking IRC channel is all American politics ranting still, dammit.
Please stop telling me to vote no on 8. Do you honestly think that there's anyone who reads your LJ who would vote yes?
Perhaps not, but apparently San Francisco is still a pit of apathy. Only 49.8% of SF registered voters actually voted (absentee+in person), compared with 63% for LA, 64% for Santa Clara county, 69% for Santa Cruz, and 60% state-wide. Over five times more people went to the 2008 pride parade than SF votes against prop 8.
I like voting in person. We use optical scan ballots, so there's no line for fraud-machines, and only rarely a short line for signing in.
Huzzah! Thank you, and get out of my head.
I'm so sick of folks bitching about CA passing prop8 on lj and facebook. Everyone who reads it voted no, im sure. And legal action is already underway to overturn it.
I too, am permanent absentee, and I fail to understand why anyone would want to go to the polls.
Churchill trumps Jerusalem: "Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time."
If you don't vote, you're defaulting to one of those other forms of government.
"even if you're an idiot."
Yeah, thanks for that insight.