tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24215087.post449890059388323911..comments2023-05-14T07:51:18.017-05:00Comments on The Suburban Christian: The limitations of votingAl Hsuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04407264726681695790noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24215087.post-27154963166847470682008-09-17T09:06:00.000-05:002008-09-17T09:06:00.000-05:00(Though you may not know it Canada is also in an e...(Though you may not know it Canada is also in an election campaign these days; with a lot less drama and coverage)<BR/>I understand the view Al is sharing here but I think he neglects a valuable avenue for political influence outside of voting. Our candidates and their representatives are currently "all ears" for feedback from the public as they seek to win our affections and approval. Now is the time to contact them with well reasoned and respectful questions and commentary that reflect our values and interests. They will never be more attentive than in election season.<BR/>In Canada we recently saw the governing party (we have several national parties, not just two) offer apologies for callous attack ads and relent on a threat to not participate in televised debates if the leader of one of the smaller parties was included.<BR/>I've heard it said that if you don't vote you shouldn't complain; I would recalibrate that to say if you don't communicate your views to those seeking to represent you, don't complain. Voting may be far less influential than a few deliberate and civil phone calls and emails.chris wignallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04491713841091343479noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24215087.post-55094145175129900102008-09-17T08:28:00.000-05:002008-09-17T08:28:00.000-05:00I think the important thing if you find you cannot...I think the important thing if you find you cannot vote for either candidate, is to still go and vote for everything else. My highschool government professor was very clear on this - his point was that without going and voting on the other issues and other positions, no one would ever know if you were just too lazy to go vote. But that if there was enough of a disconnect between say 50,000 people voting in a given area -but only 40,000 of them voting for a presidential candidate, then that would say something to both parties. For that matter - if you went and got a ballot and chose not to vote on any of the races - would it still count you as having "voted"? There really should be a choice for "I abstain but I'm here to make it clear I'm abstaining but not just choosing not to vote."Allyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04602807900665273245noreply@blogger.com