From: mdiehl@triton.unm.edu (J. Michael Diehl)
Subject: Re: Boycotting the Vote
Date: Wed, 14 Oct 92 08:24:55 GMT
Organization: University of New Mexico, Albuquerque


|a republican (note the lower-case r) democracy, and vote
|in every election.  I haven't missed one yet, and yes,
|I believe my vote has made a difference.  Call me a
|wild-eyed optimist. :-)

YOUR A WILD-EYED OPTIMIST! :^)  Couldn't resist.

This will be my first time voting.  I am 24.  Untill now I haven't seen a
candidate worth voting for.  Voting for someone implies advocacy, which I 
wasn't prepared to give.  Then it was brought to my attention that by not
voting, I relinquish all my rights to complain.  If I don't "go with the
system," what gives me the right to complain about it?  So I decided to 
vote....for myself.  I was going to write myself in on the ballot.  I
assumed one could do this.  This was my form of protest about how this
government has been run.  And it looks damned good on a resume to say I
ran for president! ;^)  Then Perot got back in.  I don't believe in Clinton's
economic plan.  I don't trust Bush. (How does one run the CIA and not 
LEARN to lie?)  I believe Perot's economic plan makes sence. I trust him.
In the worst case, Perot turnes out to be absolutely incompetent.  (which I
doubt will happen, but assume it does.)  Then we haven't lost any more by
voting Perot, than by voting for the polititions, have we?  BUT, we have sent
a message to "the powers that be" that their power isn't guaranteed.  That
we can rid ourselves of PACS and special interest groups and partisan 
government.  Assuming that the current state of affairs in government is
undesirable, then voting for the polititions will be a vote for perpetuating
this undesirable condition.  Voting for Perot at the very least represents
denouncing the status quo, and sending a message to Washington.  Will Perot
turn out to be incompetent?  No.  One doesn't become a bizillionaire for being
stupid.  Remember that presidents have advisors....  No, Perot understands 
what a world super power should be... a world economic super power.  Look at
Japan.  Would any one deny that they are a super power?  No.  But they don't
have a (large?) army.  No, but they have money.  Our money.  That is the 
position that a post-cold-war super power wants to be in.  Perot seems to be the
only candidate that understands this.  And this is the position that President
Perot would try to get the US into.

<As the speaker steps down from his pulpit, the crowd goes wild with 
applause.> Then I wake up.  Thanx for listening to me.  Look foreward to your
comments.


+-------------------------+----------------------------------------------------+
|  J. Michael Diehl  ;-]  |  I thought I was wrong once.  But, I was mistaken. |
|                         +----------------------------------------------------+
|  mdiehl@hydra.unm.edu   | "I like children.....they bounce!"                 |
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that Perot under

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