Someone said earlier today, “I wouldn’t vote for a Republican in a million years.” He later clarified that he wouldn’t vote for a member of any party, be they Republican, Democratic, or Libertarian.
My response-question was this: “So you wouldn’t vote for someone that represents your views almost perfectly, simply because they associate themselves with a party?”
harryandthehenderson’s answer? “Yep, because those political parties are just lackeys of special interests that I have none of my interests at heart.”
harryandthehenderson appears to have a very different understanding of the phrase “represents your views” than I do. You see, when I say John represents some particular set of views, I mean he actively works to put those views into action. harryandthehenderson appears to mean that John might hold those views himself but ignores them in favor of some special interest or other. If harryandthehenderson is correct, John can hardly be said to represent those views, can he?
My use of the phrase mirrors closely the meaning of the words, while harryandthehenderson’s apparent understanding of the phrase removes its meaning and replaces it with useless drivel.
This is why our political system is so messed up. There are citizens out there who actively refuse to vote for people who represent their views, simply because those politicians have chosen to associate themselves with a party. That refusal essentially ensures that those citizens’ views will never be represented in our government.
Vote based on your views, people! If you refuse to vote for people who believe as you do, then you’re ensuring that people who don’t will get elected, and your complaints about politicians ignoring your views will be your own fault.