One more thing to vent about!

[Crowderfarms]

In this County, we have over 80,000 registered voters. We had general elections here, this past Thursday, and only about 17% of the registered voters, got off their lazy butts and voted. Their excuse? It was too hot!!!! Give me a break.The polls were open from daylight to dark.

The other 83% that did not excercise a Freedom we have fought many years for, will be the first to BITCH about issues that will arise from those that the rest of US elected.

Seems to me that people need to put up or shut up, after all, they sat home and should have utilized their Democratic right. You can make a difference.

Now that it's off my chest I feel better!.

 

[Frankie]

Couldn't agree with you more. Heat is just an excuse, though. Mid term elections almost always have low turnout, especially the primaries.

 

[MULDOON]

How bout if you don't use your right to vote, within a number
of years maybe 5 ?
Then you lose your right to vote!

How bout if you have been on welfare for over 3 years,
then you lose your right to vote!

Then maybe we wouldn't have People trying to get elected,
Promising to give more money away to large blocks of voting,
people who are being carried by other tax paying people?


Works for me!!

 

[MULDOON]

How Long Do We Have?

About the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution, in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh, had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years prior: "A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the worlds greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years. During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

1. From bondage to spiritual faith;
2. From spiritual faith to great courage;
3. From courage to liberty;
4. From liberty to abundance;
5. From abundance to complacency;
6. From complacency to apathy;
7. From apathy to dependence;
8. From dependence back into bondage "

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the 2000 Presidential election:

Population of counties won by: Gore: 127 million; Bush: 143 million;
Square miles of land won by: Gore: 580,000; Bush: 2,427,000
States won by: Gore: 19 Bush: 29
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Gore: 13.2; Bush: 2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory Bush won was mostly the land owned by the tax-paying citizens of this great country. Gore's territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off government welfare..."

Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some 40 percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase.

Does everyone realize just how much is at stake, knowing that apathy is the greatest danger to our freedom.

 

[Crowderfarms]

This Election was an important one in my book. Commisioners,Trustee, Criminal Court Judge, Sheriff,( our current one is under a Federal Indictment, and fixin' to go on trial). How could you sit on your dead Ass? Muldoon, I like that idea, and Frankie, you're right heat was just an excuse.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

The other 83% that did not excercise a Freedom we have fought many years for, will be the first to be nice about issues that will arise from those that the rest of US elected.

When this happens with the folks that I know, who don't/didn't vote, I always tell them "in my opinion when you chose to not vote, you chose to lose your right to complain". I then rag on about people not making an effort to change whatever situation it is they're complaining about. Sure, there are many situations etc. that we do make an effort to change, but we fail to make that change, but at least we/they/whomever made an effort. I have far more respect for those who make an all out honest effort than for those who just "sit" and do nothing but complain about it and say "I can't".

I'll shut up now.

Katherine

 

[3MR]

Muldoon - that was a very interesting read.

Crowder - I agree 100%, its always the people who fail to do what they can who complain the most about what other do. It goes back to the old saying "If your not part of the solution, then your part of the problem."

If you didnt exercise your right to vote in an election, then you dont have a right to an opinion about the outcome of that election.

 

[Crowderfarms]

I started on a few down at the Store Friday morning, about not voting, and their response was "I was afraid I'd vote for the wron person". Lame excuse. It's consumed this small town for months with "Who's Who" and the canidates stance on issues such as Taxes, Crime, and other important issues. At leas those of us voted out one Scumbag who had our taxes raise a couple pf years ago., we elected a great Criminal Court Judge, thats a personal friend of ours and a great Sheriff, who has honest, integrity and a close relationship with the public, and will kick butt on the criminal element here. Wish he was as tough as Ol' Buford Pusser. :lol:

 

[dun]

Voting while a right is also a duty! If it's going to be hot, usually you can tell a week or so ahead of time, get an absenty ballot. I put that little I voted sticker on my hat and make an effort to go to places around town and ask people if they've voted. Been known to haul people to the polls just to eliminate one more excuse. I've even hauled democrats to the polls just to make sure that hey voted. Our election is this tuesday and you can bet that I'll be bugging people about it. There are several very important issues on the ballot and we need to get a turn out.
A few years ago there was a pol from CA that claimed that only something like 3-4% (don;t recall the exact %) of the people made the determination for all of us. He had it broken down by those that were eligablke to register to vote, those that had actaully registered and then those that voted. Pretty sad commentary on the state of things.

dun

 

[Hasbeen]

Gee, Muldoon, I got excited when I read your post. As a conservative who enjoys a little back and forth with my liberal aquaintences, I thought that was just the ammo I was looking for as I have a strong belief that the "real Americans" are mostly rural, hard working people. However, when I decided to use Google to come up with a link to support my arguement, I pulled up the following link to Snopes. Sadly, it's mostly just another E-mail hoax. http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/tyler.asp

 

[MULDOON]

I am so disapointed

It even seemed like it made sense,
Dad gum E-Mail!!!

 

[aplusmnt]

I think less and less people are voting because they just do not feel it makes a difference one way or the other. They group all Politicians in a group as one. Kind of like you are voting for the Devil or Satan.

Not that I agree with that thinking but I can understand how some could feel that way.

 

[john250]

I share your concern about non-voters.
At least this way, the decisions were made by 17% who cared. Chances are they were the ones who informed themselves and thought about their choices.
Maybe it's best that way.
Another point. In Indiana we haven't been able to purge the voting lists for years. The % turnout is artificially low because many on the lists have moved away or they voted once years ago for one candidate who was kin or a lodge brother, etc. (We do remove the dead, in most precints) :roll:

 

[dun]

I think less and less people are voting because they just do not feel it makes a difference one way or the other. They group all Politicians in a group as one. Kind of like you are voting for the Devil or Satan.

Not that I agree with that thinking but I can understand how some could feel that way.

Back in the 60s my day said he hoped he'ld live long enough to vote for someone instead of against some one. He didn't, but I did, but it's been a few years.

dun

 

[Dave]

Hey, we don't remove the dead from the list here. In our last govenor race, which was so close that it was recounted three times, it was eye openning to find out how many of those dead people voted.
Now that is really exercising your right to vote when you vote after you are dead.

 

[aplusmnt]

I share your concern about non-voters.
At least this way, the decisions were made by 17% who cared. Chances are they were the ones who informed themselves and thought about their choices.
Maybe it's best that way.

Good point, nothing worse than an uneducated person voting Dem because they have been led to believe they are for the lower income people, or on the other flip just voting for any Republican because you think they will be a Conservative. Things are a lot more complex than that.

Sometimes it is a good thing that everyone does not vote.

 

[VanC]

nothing worse than an uneducated person voting Dem

Aplus: Don't you read the New York Times? According to them and their ilk Eisenhower, Ford, Reagan, and both Bushs' either were are are stupid. Nixon was smart but was pure evil. Therefore if you vote Republican you are either dumb or evil. Democrats, on the other hand, are sophisticated, "right thinking" folks and are our only hope for the future. :roll: :roll: ;-)

 

[VanC]

Sometimes it is a good thing that everyone does not vote.

I agree.

 

[aplusmnt]

Therefore if you vote Republican you are either dumb or evil.

Then call me dumb and evil!

 

[ctlbaron]

It's a shame big C but its always low turn out everywhere. You don't realize what you have until you don't have it anymore.

Nixon wasn't evil. No worse than any other president, he just got caught.

The United States is not a democracy and it was never intended to be. It is a republic.