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Tell HN: Vote.
If you can, vote. It is your duty as an American to speak for yourself. We have the power to change things, we have the power to make the world a better place.
Just vote.
- debt 18y agoDon't just vote; vote Obama.
- speek 18y agoWhat about Nader, McKinney, etc?
- noodle 18y agoHomer: America, take a good look at your beloved candidates. They're nothing but hideous space reptiles. [unmasks them] [audience gasps in terror] Kodos: It's true, we are aliens. But what are you going to do about it? It's a two-party system; you have to vote for one of us. [murmurs] Man1: He's right, this is a two-party system. Man2: Well, I believe I'll vote for a third-party candidate. Kang: Go ahead, throw your vote away. [Kang and Kodos laugh out loud] [Ross Perot smashes his "Perot 96" hat]
- alex_c 18y agoDon't blame me, I voted for Kodos.
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoThe executioner? Or the Simpsons guy?
- alex_c 18y agoThe Python Regex Debugger.
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoI was going to vote for him. But I just had a hard time evaluating it all.
- IsaacSchlueter 18y agoI say my opponent's 2% tax goes too far! And I say my opponent's 2% tax doesn't go too far enough!
- jbenz 18y agoAbortions for none! Boooooooo! Alright. Abortions for all! Boooooooo! Alright. Abortions for some. Miniature American flags for others! Yaaaaaaaaaaay!
- viggity 18y agoI really don't understand the Obama-ness of HN. I'm certainly not busting my ass working on my business just to see Obama "spread my wealth around". I understand the realities of having a progressive tax system, but Obama crosses a line with me when he is going to tax the rich just to hand it straight over to everyone else in $1000 cash increments. At least in the past the Democrats wanted to buy the poor $1000 in fishing equipment instead of handing out $1000 worth of fish. His plan is the very definition of Marxism.
- viggity 18y agoFYI I'm fine with someone disagreeing and down voting my comment, but I would appreciate some sort of response if you do. I'd like to know why you think I'm wrong
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoViggity, This is my only comment on the matter, and I comment because, this voting system makes no sense and it's hard to use it as a feedback device. People vote you up or down based on whether they want to look at your comment. This site is heavily Obama-ish -- I'm guessing 80% or so. There are some libertarians such as myself rambling around. Probably some Republicans too, but they're deep into some sort of witness protection program I guess. :) You won't get a conversation. They'll just keep voting your comments into the mud. Stupid, huh?
- sc 18y agoLibertarian beliefs do not presuppose a lack of Obama support.
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoAgreed. Nor do they indicate a lack of McCain support. That's why I love libertarians -- we're such a pain in the ass to everybody else.
- yummyfajitas 18y ago
- jackowayed 18y agoAlso, if you can, try to vote in the middle of the day to both alleviate and avoid long lines. They say 9am-3pm is the least-busy time.
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoVoting is one of the few things the system asks you do to around here. So get off you arses and vote! My son is a ardent Democrat. My wife a Republican. Each year, she stops by and picks him up on the way to the polls. The act of voting should be important on a personal level that transcends statistics or apathy. It's a common duty and celebration of our right of choice.
- nazgulnarsil 18y agoif their votes cancel each other out why bother?
- DanielBMarkham 18y agoBecause voting is about a lot more than counting votes. That's the point. We aren't in some struggle against the evil other guys (republicans, democrats) that are out to ruin our country. That's partisan election-year bullshit. Instead we are intelligent people who have honest differences. We're in this thing together a lot more than we're in this thing to exert our will over other citizens. Voting is being part of the system. Not only that, but voting is a re-affirmation that we can vote. We can choose. Making good choices is important even if you're in the minority. It's symbolic, but that's not the nature of my argument. It's required. Even if their votes cancel each other out, it's required that they take the time to make the best decisions they can and to exercise their right of choice. Like I said, it's one of the few things that's expected of us lunkheads.
- nazgulnarsil 18y agono, people don't generally have honest differences. an honest differences is when both sides are clearly identified, and there is mutual respect for differing conclusions based on the same data. policies in america are not based on anything in reality, but on what sells well. imagine a marketing company that is run by the people it markets to. given such a feedback loop extreme results are not surprising.
- mseebach 18y ago
- Shamiq 18y agoThrowing this out there: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/magazine/06freak.html?pagewanted=print http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/magazine/06freak.html?page...
- lisp_programmer 18y agoI will vote.
- mynameishere 18y agoWe live in interesting times. (1/2 of the possible results of an ancient Chinese curse. I think.) We all know that voting is statistically meaningless--in fact, even if the vote comes down 50.0 million to 50.0 million, the actual result will be decided by whoever has the better lawyer in the inevitable supreme court spectacle. So really, the only value is in the psychological effect voting has on yourself. Libertarians sometimes say "Don't vote" for this very reason, because voting makes you a participant in a corrupt system. (It's a standard brainwashing tactic to get people to say things they don't believe. Even if they know they don't believe, the honorable sense of "keeping one's word" overwhelms reason.) Therefore, 3rd party votes are completely legitimate, since elections are pyschologically valid and mathematically pointless.
- jncraton 18y agoVoting is not statistically meaningless. Voting gives us a good way to judge where the majority of the nation wants to go. Just because your vote doesn't decide the election does not mean that your vote is meaningless. It carries the same weight as mine, McCain's, or Obama's. This is a good thing.
- mynameishere 18y agoYeah, it is. Math is funny that way. In fact, it is probably a net-negative activity to drive across town to purchase a lottery ticket for 0 (zero) dollars that has a 100 million dollar payoff at 1:100,000,000 odds. Why? Because the time/energy expenditure of driving across town itself is a cost in excess of the likely returns. Voting is the same way, except you get somewhat less than 100M if you win. And, if there's confusion, I'm talking about individuals voting, not groups. This is why sending large checks to favored candidates is not meaningless. It can sway many people, ultimately.
- axod 18y agoYeah I'm not sure the last 2 elections actually went with the popular vote. Was voting in the last 2 elections worthwhile? I'm not convinced.
- IsaacSchlueter 18y ago
- mstefff 18y agoFind me one candidate that isn't completely full of s&%t, and maybe I'll cast a vote. Maybe one person that understands English enough to actually answer a question in front of a camera. It's insulting. 90% of the population doesn't have a single clue about how the government runs, anything about the economy, foreign relations, what any of the candidates are even speaking about. It's a population voting blindly based on which TV shows and commercials they happen to watch. We have states that practically automatically turn towards a certain party each time. An electoral college system makes all of the difference. Overfunded campaigns that buy your vote like big companies sell you their garbage. It's a mess..
- johns 18y agoSo don't vote for a major party or write someone in. If you don't vote, don't complain.
- blackguardx 18y agoIt's not just about the presidential election. Perhaps the greatest impact a voter has is on his local community/state. Here in California, our referendums have far-reaching consequences. Too much emphasis is placed on the presidential election.
- mstefff 18y ago+ idiots who think their campaign 'promises' we all be passed and implemented by Nov. 5th
- mhartl 18y agoVote if it makes you feel good---whether out of a sense of participation, obligation, or duty. But don't kid yourself that you're "making a difference". The probability that your vote makes any difference is negligible. And please don't give people who don't vote a hard time; theirs is arguably the more rational choice, so there's no need to be self-righteous about it. (I am voting, BTW, but mainly to have an answer to the question "Who did you vote for?" I have to admit that feels a little cowardly.)
- johns 18y agoThe odds are your vote won't make a difference. But there's a chance, however remote, that it might make a huge difference. That's reason enough for me.
- Prrometheus 18y agoDo you by any chance play the lottery?
- johns 18y agoAbout as often as I vote
- mechanical_fish 18y agoThe probability that your vote makes any difference is negligible. On the contrary: On any given issue, my vote cancels out a vote on the other side. That's a pretty important role. Without my vote, my side's excess votes would fail to carry the day. The only way to have one's vote fail to "make a difference" is by finding someone who votes exactly opposite to you on every issue and making a pact with them not to vote. But you have to make sure they don't sneak off and vote when you're not looking. All in all, it's a lot easier to just cast a ballot.
- DEinspanjer 18y agoSure, if you are a member of the two parties that make up the US political system. If you are not a member of those two parties, your vote holds no worth within the political system. The two major parties normally dismiss or deride issues made by the green or libertarian parties. In some cases, it is possible that my vote outside the two party system can cause the person I least prefer to be elected. Yay! Until the US abolishes the electoral college and institutes a more representative election system such as an approval or preferential system (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preferential_voting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preferential_voting), I will continue to be dissatisfied with voting for the president.
- IsaacSchlueter 18y agoIn most cases, your vote is meaningless. The common duty and celebration of whatever is kind of BS. You're better off convincing someone who would have voted differently not to vote at all. Instead, the two of you can celebrate your rights with beers, which is way more enjoyable, and has the same effect on policy. If you live in California, Obama will win this state. It's not even a contest. Why not do something creative with your vote? Have some fun with it. You know, you can write in ANYONE's name for the presidential election. Hypnotoad 08! Proposition 8 really is pretty close, and is evil. It's worth going to the polls just to vote no on that. Religious fundies come out in force, and we need to balance their hate.
- krschultz 18y agoVoting for the President can seem meaningless, but the local elections are really decided by small margins. Our town of 60,000 often has mayoral races that have margins of less than a thousand. And that often has more of an impact on your daily life. Property taxes, local roads, local schools, zoning, parks, green acres conservation etc.
- mhartl 18y agoAll Hail President Hypnotoad!
- yters 18y agoAnd the more Republicans you convince that it is meaningless to vote, the more certain a Democrat win is - so it's inevitable! Since a Democrat win is inevitable, no one needs to bother voting. Saves all the hassle of standing in line and such.
- astine 18y agoObama held a rally two blocks from my home last night. There were over two thousand at the rally all partying and having a good time. I imagine that they all went home so confident that the next day they forgot to vote. I'm joking of course. This state will swing blue this year. But, it's happened before that over-confidence has lost an election. I suggest that every man go out and vote his conscience. It's not just about who wins this time. It's about perception, and exercise of your rights. If you don't exercise your rights, they will be taken away. Even if you disagree with both major candidates, a vote of 'other' will do more for your cause than no vote.
- kirubakaran 18y agoNo more election news after tomorrow, yay!
- aneesh 18y agoNo, that's when the retrospective "This is how [Obama|McCain] won" articles start about who was best organized, who used technology best, etc :)
- unalone 18y agoI would LOVE to study Obama's campaign as a retrospect. He did things nobody else ever thought of. He is the first real Internet candidate.
- clay 18y agoHoward Dean doesn't count?
- unalone 18y agoDean was the first one to realize the Internet could be used. But Obama built up an incredibly powerful campaign force in part by using the Internet to coordinate vast amounts of people.
- mattmaroon 18y agoI think you need to get more than 8 total votes to count. Dean and Ron Paul were both web fads, but Obama used it as an organizational tool and got results from it. Even if he doesn't win, he's forever changed the way campaigns will be run.
- Alex3917 18y agoDean wasn't a web fad, he was leading all the polls until about two weeks before the first primary when he opened his mouth and started saying stupid shit.
- scudco 18y agoI know this might rile a few people up, but I think voting is coercive. Personally, I don't see myself ever participating in a vote unless I know everyone involved in its consequences is a consenting individual. So I respectfully disagree that it is my duty or anyone's duty to participate in a coercive vote. http://is.gd/3WIh http://is.gd/3WIh
- enomar 18y agoYou pay taxes though, right?
- scudco 18y agoOut of fear of being murdered, yes. Honestly, this may sound like an exaggeration to prove a point, but I honestly pay taxes to save myself from certain death. But I am glad you asked because I am interested in not paying federal taxes next year. Instead of simply keeping the money for myself, however, I want to calculate what the federal government would like to rob from my wages and giving it away to charity. If you're interested in doing something like this with me let me know.
- enomar 18y agoMurdered? Certain death? Maybe you know something I don't, but I don't think they impose the death penalty for not paying taxes. In any case, paying taxes and not voting seems to be an ineffective strategy. What's your end game?
- scudco 18y agoI would like to live in peace with my neighbors. The only justifiable way to achieve this goal is through non-violent noncompliance against the coercive state. Also the post I linked to in my first comment explains why any illegitimate power must resort to murder to assert its power over others.
- jdavid 18y ago
- markm 18y agoI don't think the message should be Just vote, but rather get educated on the issues and cast an informed vote.
- speek 18y agoYou're completely right. I probably should have explicitly said that, but I meant people should get educated as well.
- eru 18y agoToo bad all that education gets reduced to essentially one bit..
- jim-greer 18y agoEveryone should learn as much about the issues as they can, though when it comes down to it you only have to be more informed than the average voter to improve the pool. Which isn't too high a bar.
- bprater 18y agoDon't forget this: You are picking a President of our Great Nation for the next 4 years. However, you are also electing a President that will likely choose one or more new Justices for our Supreme Court. That choice could live on for the next 30-40 years. If a conservative President is elected, the court will likely swing conservative with his choice in one or more Justices. Liberal decisions like Roe V. Wade may be overturned. Pick a liberal President and it will likely be upheld. It is those kinds of decisions that the court will make that will affect you in a direct way for a very long time. If that's important to you -- vote.
- jdavid 18y agoI unfortunately do not believe that is sufficient value in arguing about something that is so personal to people. A president's first concern should be to the sovereignty of a Nation (economy, education, infrastructure, trade, military), and somehow, whether or not a woman wants to kill her unborn child is of little concern to me on a national level. That is something that should be decided by her religious beliefs or where she chooses to live and raise her family. I meat so many female vegetarians that don't want to kill a cow to eat it, that I can not imagine a woman aborting a baby because its FUN. Women typically have a reason, and if we want to stop abortions there are so many pieces to the puzzle that making abortions illegal will not stop them. If the reasons are economic, then we need to give single mothers more help. If the reason is emotional in the case of rape and inceast, we need to be understanding to let them choose. If the reason is medical, and life threatening, the moral lines are gray at best anyways. If it was done as the result of a carefree sexual behavior, stopping abortions are not going to stop pre-martial sex. Heck I bet many of us on this forum are 1st borns and very well might be the result of a opps between two unmarried lovers. It really pains me that we can become so easily divided on a topic that is so personal and so hard to be black and white on. I really wish there were more political options than YES or NO.
- lutorm 18y agoI'm with you here. Besides it being a matter of the majority tyrannizing a tiny minority (same with same-sex marriage), while I can see how people can feel strongly about it, I'm surprised they really feel it is so important that it should trump issues affecting their own daily lives like economy, health care and the environment.
- peregrine 18y agoIt's my first time voting in a major election. Ever since I was a young lad I dreamed of voting. Every election I vote, city council, state, federal, whatever I vote. I take the 20mins to Google and find out what I need and make a decision. If you say "Who cares anyways one vote isn't going to matter" think of it this way.One rain drop doesn't create or fill a river, but a million together do. Every time you exercise your rights to vote you add a small drop.
- patrickg-zill 18y agoIf you are an idiot, please do not vote.
- staunch 18y agoOr at least vote for my candidate of choice!
- Retric 18y agoI think idiot's voting for your candidate is corrosive to that political party. Take republicans and farm subsidies they are directly in opposition to most of the "core" principles of personal accountability, free trade, less government etc but try and find a republican in Idaho that does not support them.
- netcan 18y agoThat's not a product of idiots voting. It's a product of compromise. The US system, favours a binary choice. You vote A or B. Australia (where I live) is even more this way. It's a stable sort of a system. Governments are fairly powerful. There is less need for the shaky post election coalitions of different systems. But it comes at a cost: Compromise. Republicans (from what we hear down here) get votes from social/moral conservatives, religious conservatives, social libertarians, nationalists, militarists, & lots of other subgroups. Then you get these smelted into traditional voter groups. So an rural area in some part of the US with a certain religious, moral, social & historic heritage might be generally sympathetic towards a militarist, nationalist, socially conservative & religious party. In the US of 2008, this is the Republicans. Along comes a decade where the region stands to gain from certain policies. For technical reasons, these policies are at odds with the part of a political theory at the centre of their parties history. This is the part of the political theory that supports less government intervention in their lives, a lot of freedom over their property, personal lives, & a lot of other stuff that they like. But the link between economic policy & individual liberty is very academic. They just want the damned price of canola to stay put. Under a different political system (say Italy's), this issue could cause a party split. Lets say, the ICP (Idaho Conservatives Party) is formed. They put a bit more emphasis on this & a bit less on that but stay close to the former party line. The difference is they support the subsidies which benefit their voters. They join the coalition that the Republicans now need to form government because three of four of these parties split. This allows the ICP to focus mostly on subsidies & a few other issues that are important to their electorate. The ICP is free to say they mostly leave issues other then sex education, subsidies & genetic patenting to the Republicans. The Republicans are free to admit that they don't like subsidy A, but it's a small price to pay to form Government. Otherwise they would have to get a different party on board with different compromises or reform the government. Theoretically, this allows parties to stay loyal to core principals. Deals get done either way. The US's system is more stable. But you could argue it's less Democratic. Minority opinions are under represented. Voters make bigger compromises & get a less granular control over what their vote means. This is probably felt more now that there are several divisive issues on the agenda.
- ivankirigin 18y agoI don't really like blind calls to vote. If you don't have an educated opinion, or even an inkling based on a gut reaction of character, don't vote.
- fallentimes 18y agoBut also realize one of the great things about living in a free country, even with all of America's faults, is the ability to exercise your right _not_ to vote.
- hugh 18y agoIn Australia we have compulsory voting. Everybody has to get off their arse and do it (or at least go to a polling place, take a ballot sheet and stick it in a box, you can leave it blank or draw a penis on it if you want). Personally I see both upside and downsides to it. On one hand it's a violation of my right not to vote, but on the other hand that's one of the more minor violations which the government by necessity commits anyway. The upside is that it leads to more moderate politics -- there's no need for the parties to appease the "base", so they always wind up fighting in the centre.
- krschultz 18y agoBut if you have to be forced to vote, how much could you know about the issues? My vote is worth more at 1/130 million than at 1/300 million. Still pretty small, but I'd rather that than be swamped by people who haven't a clue (even though many are that way already).
- kaens 18y agoHow does being forced to vote preclude you being informed about the issues? Furthermore, it doesn't really sound like they're forced to vote - it sounds like they're forced to drop a piece of paper in a box that may or may not express a vote.
- bmunro 18y agoBecause it is compulsory, it is also very easy to vote in Australia. Most people can walk to their local school, community hall etc. There are places to vote absolutely everywhere. There are no queues to vote. You just walk in and vote. This year, I queued for the first time ever. there were four people in front of me, I had to wait maybe twenty seconds. Voting is always held on Saturday
- rewind 18y agoAnd to all the non-Americans on HN -- myself among them -- please don't forget to post a reminder to your fellow countrymen/women on HN to vote if your country is having an election. I'm sure all the people who upvoted this post will be super-pumped to see that at the top of the homepage! Some other TellHN topics that I'd like to see in the future: - Just say no to drungs - Don't drink and drive - Have your pets spayed and neutered I'm Canadian, and I'm just giving you guys a hard time ;-) Actually, I think most Canadians are a bit jealous because we just had an election that was a huge waste of money and didn't mean a damn thing. I have to admin, yours is way more interesting.
- time_management 18y agoAlthough I intend on voting tomorrow, I don't agree that it's a "duty" to vote. In fact, I usually don't vote in local elections if I don't have substantial knowledge about the candidates, and given that I've moved about 10 times in the last 6 years, that's often. (The top few Google hits do not amount to "substantial knowledge".) The purpose of voting is value discovery (analogous to "price discovery" in financial markets) but if I'm not able to evaluate the candidates, I'm not really assisting in that process; I'm just adding noise. I think that a major reason the two-party system exists is that a significant number of people vote based on party "brand name" without evaluating the individual candidates.
- sdurkin 18y agoThe best reason to vote is not that your vote will change the election, its that the process of voting will change you. It causes you to consider the problems in your society and be aware of proposed solutions. Sounding your voice is just as important as being heard.
- kaens 18y agoLots of people vote without considering anything at all, or without being aware of proposed solutions. Hell, I'd guess that the majority of voters yesterday were not very well informed about any of the proposed solutions.
- PStamatiou 18y agoDear Texas, THANKS FOR NOT SENDING MY ABSENTEE BALLOT! I don't know how many forms I filled out, but you never sent me a ballot. I have my voter registration card here and everything. Short of an 800 mile roadtrip or standby flight home, looks like I'll be sitting this one out. :-/
- elidourado 18y agoNot voting. "Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard." -- H. L. Mencken
- mindslight 18y agoYes please just show up and fill in a bubble for either of the candidates likely to win. You too can help legitimize both the appointment of a president who only has support from 35% of the population, and the process of using machines which will change your vote when it actually matters!
- tlrobinson 18y agoI think you're lost. It sounds like you're looking for www.reddit.com
- mindslight 18y agoWhat's the difference between reddit and HN with blatant political topics such as this one? Normally I avoid feeding political comments on HN, but with this submission it seems any decency has gone out the window. I'm going to the polls tomorrow due to tradition and ease of conversation. But if one's default action is to stay home, they'll get more done by sticking with that. Hackers change the world by writing code, not by checking a box and hoping that somehow this time will be different.
- tlrobinson 18y agoYou're right, and I think this whole submission and thread of comments illustrates exactly why political topics are typically avoided on Hacker News. It quickly devolves into sarcastic comments, and more sarcastic comments poking fun at the original sarcastic comments. Your comment was just very similar to the things I'm used to seeing on Reddit, but not Hacker News. Anyway, I'm looking forward the elections being over and Hacker News hopefully going back to it's good old self of mostly technology and entrepreneurial related posts.
- far33d 18y agoI thought this was going to be a plea about how to keep crappy stories off the front page.
- kajecounterhack 18y agohttp://www.forbes.com/2008/10/09/mitra-economy-mess-tech-enter-cx_sm_1010economy.html http://www.forbes.com/2008/10/09/mitra-economy-mess-tech-ent... Time for us to buckle down and admit that Obama's going to win and that angel investment is going to suffer a bit, and sole proprietorships with taxes rising from 35%->50% are going to have to bite the bullet.
- pkrumins 18y agoNot just vote -- vote for Obama!!!
- mattmaroon 18y agoI think Hacker News is now officially looking down and seeing a shark pass below.
- Tichy 18y agoI am not too concerned if singular special events end up on HN. There are not enough events of that scope to pose a threat (I presume).
- mattmaroon 18y agoIt's just the clicheness of it that bothers me. Nobody in the country needs a reminder. It's the same with all the various holiday messages.
- Tichy 18y agoAt least we also had the "don't vote" counterpoint by freakonomics.
- deleted 18y ago[deleted]
- Prrometheus 18y agoYour vote will make no difference. Statistically, you have a better chance of winning the Powerball lottery than making a difference with your vote. Voting is not "speaking for yourself". You are allowed to speak one of two things, neither of which may be what you want to say. You do have the power to change things and make the world a better place, but not through the political process. If you stay home from the polls and use that time to read to a child or help an old lady carry groceries, you will have done more good for the world than if you spent the morning voting. Most of the good things in this world, our vast cultural heritage and our technological richness, have not been generated through the voting booth. If you want to contribute to the material and spiritual wealth of our species, you will find your efforts best spent elsewhere. If you buy into the hype and feel compelled to vote for the entertainment aspect of it, don't pretend that you are better than those who did not. You aren't. When the officials you vote for harm other people through their actions in office, those people have the right to complain, even if they did not vote. Morality is not overridden by democracy.
- rms 18y agoI presume you will be staying home and reading to a child instead of voting today? You're a much better person than everyone else on the internet. If only the whole world was like you, we'd have completely eliminated everything wrong with society by now.
- deleted 18y ago[deleted]
- Prrometheus 18y agoI will be voting, but I acknowledge that it is purely for entertainment value and that I am not changing the world and that I am not morally better than those that do not vote. In fact, many of them are probably morally better than I.
- tjr 18y agoOf course, if everyone except for you didn't vote, then your one vote would mean a lot more. If everyone except for you and me didn't vote, then our votes would still have significant value. If everyone except for you and me and ten others didn't vote, then... ...well, somewhere along the line, do our votes really stop mattering? A vote for X amid thousands of votes for Y doesn't mean much, but if all of the Y voters figured their votes didn't matter and stayed home, then the one vote for X would be pretty important. That said, I fully expect that my one vote won't make any difference in how things turn out, but I still feel compelled to cast it. For the democracy to function as intended, we ought have as many valid votes as possible; for me to expect votes from others but not vote myself simply because my one vote doesn't matter would be absurd.
- lst 18y ago(I have to give you a really bad notice: Obama is not Christ. So please don't expect too much from politics.)
- markessien 18y agoI wonder what the headlines will be tommorow. If I were an editor, I'd go for one of these tabloid headlines in 24pt font, depending on who wins: Bradley Baloney! Obama in Power! McCain upsets Again! Blowout! Guess who's coming to the White House?
- ashleyw 18y agoWish I could vote, I've suffered though the campaigns just as much as any American, and lets face it — what ever the US does, the rest of the world follows. But if I could...it'd be for Obama.
- asnyder 18y agoJust voted, and it felt great!
- APLonDrugs 18y agoAgree, Me too:-)
- axod 18y agoIsn't 1 vote per person just mob rule though? You end up with the lowest common denominator... Doesn't it sort of irritate the hell out of you if you're informed, voting for the best interests of the country and future, while someone next to you is voting because the candidate has a nice smile or has the same first name as them. Maybe you get a vote when you can answer a few simple questions to prove you actually have a clue what you are voting for etc. You wouldn't run a company by giving an apprentice the same voting rights in decisions as the CEO. Personally I think there's a lot to be said for having a monarchy. I know these views are probably completely counter to most people, but that's life... Thought I'd give my 2c.
- nihilocrat 18y agoToo late! I already early voted. Do all states have early voting or just some?
- thomasfl 18y agoIf I were an american I'd vote. You guys need a change.
- astine 18y agoDone.
- Stubbs 18y agoI hope the UK pays half as much interest in the next General Election as there has been over the US election. Unfortunately I don't believe we have any candidates half as compelling at Obama.
- telliksemoh 18y agoOBAMA STRAIGHT UP LIED!!!! He said he had nothing to do with the CFR(Council on Foreign Relations) Then why is his wifes name on the list? Oops? So i guess your wife is in it but you have nothing to do with it!? OK! If you're voting for Obama or McCain, they are members of the COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS, and the NEW WORLD ORDER. Clinton, too. They are for globalization and one world government. Their plans are to build the NAFTA superhighway, starting in eastern Texas, heading north. They will be stealing Americans land by emminent domain. Then the opening of the Canadian and Mexican borders will be next. We will then be called the NORTH AMERICAN UNION, followed by the new currency, the AMERO. The USA will be dissolved.
- acgourley 18y agoI see you registered that name just to post that.
- rms 18y agoI like the Council on Foreign Relations. They do rule the world, but they aren't as extreme as they are made out to be. It is more like, no one ever questions them, because they are always right. If the NY Times has a bias, it is in favor of the Council on Foreign Relations's world view. When you get down to it, it is really bizarre how much influence these think tanks can have, the most profound example being the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_the_New_American_Century http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_the_New_American_Ce... Globalization is not so bad. Either way, it's inevitable. The CFR may rule the world with their quiet influence, but the rest is conspiracy theory. If the world eventually unites in world government, it will be the UN running things, not your mysterious new world order. Obama is not a member of the CFR, but he gave a speech to them, as required of all serious presidential candidates.
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- hollywoodcole 18y agoGo vote! If you guys can stand in lines for a xbox 360 and iphone you can stand in line to vote.
- yagibear 18y agoHaven't we already voted in a poll from PG http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=349421 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=349421 asking "Allow stories about the election?", with 49 yes and 218 no when I last checked?
- igorhvr 18y agoI find it amusing that a popularity contest (and one not really different from a high school one in any significant way) is used to decide who will take charge of a country. I am also impressed to see otherwise intelligent people defending this scheme, and honestly believing it to be a great one or even claiming there is not better alternative.