TexasCHLforum.com

LDB415 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 30, 2020 3:00 pmIf you care only about feelings after the vote then yes, there are other choices. If you care about the actual outcome of the election you have 5 options.

1. Vote FOR the good of the nation, to support the second amendment, against converting to Venezuelaism, by voting for Trump.
2. Vote AGAINST the good of the nation, to support the second amendment, and for converting to Venezuelaism, by voting for Biden.
3. Vote for feeling good by voting for a 3rd party candidate who has absolutely zero chance of winning but makes you feel good, in effect voting for Biden and against the nation.
4. Vote for feeling good by voting for a write-in candidate who has absolutely zero chance of winning but makes you feel good, in effect voting for Biden and against the nation.
5. Stay home and abstain from voting, in effect voting for Biden and against the nation.

Libertarian? Other 3rd parties? Absolutely support them and vote for them in primaries. But until something changes and they show a real possibility of winning there are only 2 choices spread across 5 options.

But at least you can do it all while eating some of THE BEST BBQ ever in Luling.

Sorry, I don't vote based on feelings, including voting for who I think can win. I vote for the candidate that I most agree with. If we all voted based on who we thought could win, we would not have elections at all. Only one person can win. Many people honestly believe that Trump has no chance of beating Biden and the Democratic machine. Some people think that Biden cannot beat Trump. Does that concept (voting for someone you think stands a chance of winning) mean they should vote based on who they thought would win, whether they agreed or not? This is the false dichotomy I was referring to. I think the other parties do stand a chance to win if they convince the majority of voters they are the right person.

Your belief that the other candidates cannot win so you won't vote for them is what is known as a self-fulfilling prophecy, another thing I am dead set against. They can win, as has been shown historically, or we would still see Whigs on the ballot.

Fortunately, the greatest thing about the US is that I get to vote for whomever I want for whatever reasons I want while you get to vote for whomever you want for whatever reasons you want. I think you, by believing in the options you listed as the only options are contributing to the problem of two parties that are flip sides of the same coin.

Many of you appear to be falling into what is correctly named a false dichotomy. There are choices besides Trump and Biden. While I have not paid attention to all of the choices, I do know that Jo Jorgenson is the presidential nominee for the Libertarian party. As long as everyone continues to believe we have a two party system and that if you don't vote for one party you are supporting the other party, we will continue to end up with screwed up choices.

I am not saying that you should not support Trump or Biden, just that you should support the candidate that best represents your interests. There are more than two options on the ballot and any candidate can win if people stop believing in this false dichotomy.

I also like to point out that abstaining is a valid vote. It does not help decide who will be the president, but it seems to be the largest single vote in the country. That says a lot about the problems we have, IMO.